Roads

County Operations is in charge of the maintenance of County Roads. Our contact numbers are 403.342.8658 or 403.350.2163

See our video page for more information on roads and bridges.

Road Bans
Our 10-Year Road Strategy
The County Council adopted a 10-Year Pavement Implementation Strategy in 2007 and a 10-year Gravel Road Plan in 2001. The overall integrity of a road surface and its base are generally weather and traffic related. Therefore, the pavement strategy is based on a priority system to determine which roads qualify as candidates for paving. A major consideration in this strategy is traffic volume. Traffic counts have historically been performed annually on roads nearing 300 counts. Roads reaching 300 vehicles minimum per average day, as per original surfacing plan, qualify for hard surfacing.

In 2008, the County Council approved a new program, effective 2009 construction season, allowing traffic counts and roads reaching 200-249 vehicles average per day to qualify for hard surfacing. The 10-year Road Plan details County standards for gravel roads. Similar to the pavement plan, the gravel road plan does not take into account divisional boundaries. Improved cost effectiveness and efficiencies can be achieved with the timely repair of roads on an overall county basis rather than on a divisional basis.

Roadway Evaluation
Re-surfacing candidates are identified and prioritized firstly according to the highest degree of affected roadway surface. Secondly by the degree of base failure; and thirdly by the degree of severity. Low priority roads generally become candidates for spot repairs to maintain road integrity. An estimated $3 to $5 million per year is required over the next several years to rehabilitate existing road base and address future road improvements, including road construction.

Grader Routes
The County currently has 13 grader routes / beats, each beat being an average of 200 km in size. In addition, the County has two roving (east / west) graders for busy high maintenance roads.

Re-Gravel Program
The County Council's directive is to see 31% of roads re-graveled annually, as compared to 24% pre-2007. This service level improvement is in response to the damage caused by steadily increasing traffic loads and Council's continued commitment to our roads. This program runs on a 3-year cycle.

Spot Gravel Program
Spot graveling is a program designed to meet the localized needs of the grader operators on roads before the re-graveling program will reach them or on roads that were not scheduled to be part of the program for any given year.

Reclamation
Reclamation is the reshaping of gravel roads to a standard that ensures positive drainage from the road surface, clearing of roadside brush and treatment of localized soft spots in roadbed. The Reclamation Program began in 2004, and has since seen over 350 km (217 miles) of gravel roads reclaimed in the County.

Drainage Program
The wet years of 2007, 2008, and the first half of 2009 brought over 150 drainage issues to Red Deer County's attention. Approximately 100 of these have been completed, but there are still a significant number of projects in the drainage program. The remaining projects will be prioritized, and the county expects to complete the remaining projects in 2010/2011.

The county will also be starting a program which provides funds and expertise to the various drainage societies and districts. Funding will be based on the number of kilometers of ditch and will necessitate landowner cooperation via the Off the Creek program.

Roadside Spraying, Seeding & Brushing


Agricultural Services has two spray trucks, which allow the County to complete roadside spraying and seeding throughout the county. Spraying assists the local landowners in controlling the migration of weeds from roadways onto private lands and vice-versa. Seeding allows for re-growth of grass in areas disturbed by construction. Red Deer County's roadside brushing program is also a vital component of our road maintenance program.

Clearing the road right of way ditches and back slopes assists in maintaining drainage and allows for more snow storage for snow removal operations. In addition, road surfaces have an opportunity to dry off quicker when there is no shading of large trees and brush in the road right of ways. This also improves safety by enhancing visibility.

Winter Maintenance


Red Deer County's road maintenance contractor utilizes six plow trucks and a grader for snow removal on our hard surfaced roads. This includes the snow removal for subdivisions and hamlets throughout the county. For gravel road snow removal, Red Deer County utilizes the 13 grader routes (beats) to complete the winter snow removal. Read more.

Alberta Transportation Roads Reports - Click Here
Environment Canada Weather Reports - Click Here

Dust Control


The dust control program, which will commence in May with completion in June, can often accommodate as much as 100 requests per year for the subsidized application of calcium on the road. Dust Suppression Application Form
 

Bridge Maintenance


The majority of Red Deer County's bridges and bridge sized culverts were built between 1950 and 1970. Since they generally have a 50 to 60 year lifespan, many of the structures are starting to show their age. Red Deer County and Alberta Transportation have a cooperative bridge inspection system intended to catch problems before the public's safety is compromised. A rehabilitation program is also in place which can, in many cases, extend bridge life expectancies at a savings to the taxpayer.

Another ongoing program involves the periodic mowing of grass at the bridge structures. This not only ensures clear sight lines to the hazard markers on the bridge, but also reduces the risk of fire damage to parts of the wooden substructures.

The county's biggest project in the next two years will be the replacement of the existing single lane bridge over the Medicine River at Ridge Road 30. A new two-lane structure (and associated improvements in the adjoining roadway) will be designed in 2010, with the intention to construct in 2011. Any parties interested in salvaging the existing truss should contact the county Operations Department.

Signage


In a typical year, Red Deer County receives on average between 50 and 60 sign requests. Both regulatory and non-regulatory sign requests must go through an approval process.