Lifetime Citizen Portal Access — AI Briefings, Alerts & Unlimited Follows
Highway superintendent outlines bridge work, slope stabilization and truck replacement challenges
Loading...
Summary
The highway superintendent reported on bridge projects, slope stabilization, mobilizations and severe maintenance pressures on aging trucks; he recommended replacing several chassis due to parts scarcity and described long upfitting lead times.
The Greene County highway superintendent gave a detailed report on county road projects and fleet challenges, telling the Legislature that aging equipment and sparse parts availability are driving proposals to replace heavy trucks.
Key projects and timing included final right‑of‑way work on the Camera 40 bridge (town of Windham) with bridge work expected next year; mid‑April mobilization for a contractor on Count 61 in New Baltimore; and slope stabilization projects scheduled to mobilize in mid‑June and run roughly six months. The superintendent said some bridge work cannot proceed because a DOT red‑flag remains unresolved on fractured rock at one site.
On fleet and maintenance, the superintendent said the county manages roughly 130 pieces of equipment directly and about 300 total across departments, and that Oshkosh parts are increasingly unobtainable. “The parts just aren’t available…fixing them is the easy part; it’s finding stuff to fix,” he said. The county is proposing three larger plow trucks but acknowledged upfitting complexities—some upfitters have quoted 24‑month lead times—which complicates planning.
Officials discussed financing: a catalytic loan amount of $142,000 was cited as part of the procurement conversation, and members debated tradeoffs between in‑house upfitting, vendor lead times, and warranty coverage. The superintendent also announced a May 9 shredding event at the Castle Transfer Station and said work on scale house electronics and the maintenance building is progressing.
Board members asked for more detailed cost estimates and timelines before finalizing large‑truck purchases, and directed staff to continue vetting vendors and to pursue options with shorter lead times where feasible.
