Last remaining gravel road in Ripley County chip-sealed on Wednesday

(SUNMAN, Ind.) – The Ripley County Highway Department has been working overtime during a summer road project. 

They are in the process of chip-sealing approximately 198 miles of county roads. 

Prior to the project, there were just a few remaining gravel roads in the county.

On Wednesday, they chip-sealed County Road 475 East which is located off of State Road 48 near Lookout. 

It now means that there are no more gravel roads in the county.

Highway Supervisor Jason Edwards said chip-sealing is the most cost-efficient way to avoid future problems on roads. 

“We are out performing maintenance and fixing certain parts of roads throughout the year, especially following storms,” Edwards said. “From a maintenance standpoint, turning a road into chip-seal helps preserve it and avoid issues such as potholes or cracks over the next year."

Edwards added that chip-sealing only takes place on roads that have at least 60 percent of cracks on it. 

“I know the road maintenance upsets some people, but this puts us in a position where we don’t have to touch a road again for about three years,” he said. 

He also credited his staff members who have been putting in overtime to get the project complete. 

“We’ve worked a lot of 10 hour days and a lot of hot days to get this done,” Edwards said. 

All chip-sealing in Ripley County is expected to be complete by Friday.