JANUARY 28, 2025|
Photo – Solar powered lighted road sign – Bigfoot99 file photo
Carbon County officials have agreed to wait to purchase road closure signs. The cost of the signs was the deal-breaker.
Road and Bridge Superintendent Kandis Fritz has been looking into ways to prevent motorists from using Sage Creek Road, south of Rawlins, to bypass Interstate 80 closures. County road crews do not maintain Sage Creek Road, otherwise known as County Road 401, during the winter months. Instead, the department focuses their efforts on more well-traveled routes.
This past December, the Board of County Commissioners authorized Fritz to ask the Wyoming Department of Transportation to install an illuminated road sign on Highway 71, which merges with Sage Creek Road. WYDOT agreed to temporarily place a sign in the area, but warned county officials that the sign may be moved at any time at WYDOT’s discretion. Fritz informed the board that WYDOT District One Engineer Ralph Tarango suggested that the county should purchase its own mobile road closure signs.
At the time, Carbon County Emergency Manager Lenny Layman said other counties are facing the same issue with road closures and offered to provide the board with an estimate for the signs.
During the county commissioners meeting held on January 23, Layman said he reached out to Wanco, a manufacturer of highway safety and traffic control signs, located in Arvada, Colorado. The company supplies various highway signs to WYDOT. After explaining the county’s specific sign needs, Layman told county commissioners that Wanco quoted a price of approximately $50,000 for two signs.
Layman explained that the county could reduce the price from $50,000 to $42,000 by picking the signs up in Colorado instead of having them delivered, and by forgoing the additional battery capacity. However, Layman said the cost savings might not justify the increased maintenance.
With reduced battery capacity, Layman said the signs may need to be periodically towed back to the Road and Bridge shop in Rawlins to recharge.
County Commissioner Gwynn Bartlett asked Layman if the Wyoming Office of Homeland Security offered a grant to purchase the signs. Layman said the county could apply to the State Homeland Security Grant Program, which is typically used for law enforcement equipment. Layman said he is confident that he could secure an SHSP grant to cover the cost of one sign. However, by using the grant for a sign, county emergency agencies may not receive funding for needed equipment upgrades.
Rather than applying for a grant, Layman recommended contacting other counties facing similar winter road closure issues to negotiate a bulk discount with the sign manufacturer. Although Layman said the potential cost savings may not be worth the increased time and effort.
In addition to winter closures, Layman said the proposed signs could be used to indicate any type of road closure and to direct traffic during the Carbon County Fair, making them an asset to the entire county. Road and Bridge Superintendent Fritz said she can also use the signs to indicate when road crews will apply magnesium chloride to the county’s dirt roads.
Commissioner John Johnson asked Fritz if she needed the signs this winter. While she could purchase the signs now using impact assistance funding, the road and bridge superintendent said she would rather save that money for upcoming bridge replacement projects. Instead, Fritz proposed waiting until spring to allocate funds from her department’s regular budget. Additionally, by waiting, Fritz said Emergency Manager Layman will have time to contact other counties about their sign needs.
The board agreed to wait until Fritz is sure her budget can support the cost of the signs before making the purchase.
In the meantime, Commissioner John Espy said representatives from WYDOT are working to give counties the ability to modify the 511 app to display county road closures. However, Commissioner Espy said he is unaware of when or if that may actually happen.
