County engineer outlines draft road-improvement policy; supervisors ask for measurable criteria

Scott, the county engineer, presented a draft road-improvement policy intended to standardize how the county evaluates citizen petitions to upgrade roads (for example, changing a Level C road to Level A or paving a Level A road).

"The policy... was just to introduce this, see if this is something that we want to work forward to, towards getting something implemented in Dubuque County," Scott said, noting the draft was adapted from Jackson County and will be refined with measurable criteria.

Scott emphasized lifecycle and maintenance costs: aggregate (gravel) roads are much less expensive to maintain than paved roads, and expanding the paved network increases long-term maintenance obligations. He provided an example ADT (average daily traffic) of about 60 vehicles on one through road under discussion and described intermediate options such as chemical or mechanical stabilization and dust control as lower-cost alternatives to full paving.

Supervisors asked Scott to include quantitative thresholds (house count, density or ADT) and to coordinate with zoning on verifiable field criteria; Anne and Wayne requested a fund analysis comparing costs to maintain paved miles versus aggregate and to show the bridge/rehab funding impacts.

No formal action was taken; staff will refine the draft policy, add measurable criteria and present a fund analysis during the upcoming budget presentation on Thursday.