Frequently Asked Questions


Road and Bridge

No, the ditch is for road drainage purposes. Trees are not to be planted in the right of way.

Call 785-823-6527 and speak to the County Engineer.
Call 785-826-6527 and Speak with the Road Superintendent.
Call 785-826-6527 and speak with the Assistant Road Superintendent.

In some instances, this may be true. More often than not, it is more of a function of the type of tire used to travel a gravel road. Saline County’s largest aggregate size is 1 ¼ inches. Rock on gravel covered roads is made of crushed quarry rock. It is sharp and jagged and causes more wear to standard tires than almost any other driving surface. Tires designed for the highway typically do not fare well on gravel roads. Slowing down and proper inflation will extend the life of these tires.

Sand alone, as a road aggregate, does not have the structural stability to hold up under the traffic counts and severe loading of agricultural equipment, delivery trucks, trash trucks and school buses without being untravellable in inclement weather. The aggregate size and materials selected by Saline County are a combination of larger and progressively smaller aggregates. This is the most cost-effective material with the best performance based on experience, price, and availability of materials. It meets a broad range of needs for all users.

Light off road all-terrain tires are recommended. All-terrain tires have sufficient tread pattern to bite into the softer gravel road. They also have stiffer sidewalls and compound that is both chip and cut resistant. Most of them are also puncture resistant, which is another big advantage when compared to light highway tires.

There is also a certain amount of trash and debris on the gravel roads such as iron, nails, pipe and just about anything Agriculture or Residential related. The County has a magnet that can be requested to run over any section of road by calling 785-826-6527.

When the roadway is wet or damp, slow down and drive in the loose gravel. This will embed the gravel into the underlying soil and compact the surface.

Pulling shoulders is a maintenance procedure that takes place throughout the year, mostly in the early spring on gravel roads and in the fall on the paved roads. It is a process in which the motors grader travel down all the roads removing the high sods from the shoulders roads.  When the shoulders of a road are to high and water sits on the traveled roadway, the BCRC pulls the high shoulders to allow the water to drain in properly into the ditches.   On gravel roads the shoulders are pulled into the road and mixed back into the road with the existing gravel.  Pulling shoulders does not always remove all of the water from the roadway, but it allows many roads to drain properly and prevent further damage to the road.

Call 785-826-6527 and speak with the County Engineer. Work within the Right of Way requires a permit that can be obtained from his office.
Do not shovel or push it out into the roadway or across the road into the ditch. It may create a hazard for someone else and a liability for you.

Asphalt roads are cleared first, then gravel roads, then earth roads.

Trees within the right of way are a hazard to the traveling public. Tree limbs shade the travel way and do not allow the sun to dry the road or melt the ice. They also create line of sight hazards.

The cutter head is the safest, most efficient and cost effective way to eliminate this hazard. The trees will grow back.

Right of ways are a clear zone for the safety of the traveling public. The right of way easements are for road purposes. Breaking the vegetation and tilling the soil allows the sediment from runoff to plug the culverts.

The process you are referring to is sealcoating which most road agencies in Kansas use as a relatively low cost method of preserving existing pavement. The tar is actually an emulsion of water and liquid asphalt which penetrates and seals small cracks in the existing pavement. Sealing these cracks on a regular basis prevents water from seeping into and softening the base of the road and over time causing potholes to form. The rock chips that we use for cover material sticks to the emulsion and, after rolling and sweeping, provides a slightly roughened skid resistant surface to improve safety. Although sealcoating can preserve and extend the life of the pavement, it is only a surface treatment and does not fill any existing bumps, holes, or irregularities and thus does not improve the ride quality. For this reason it is important to apply sealcoat to a road BEFORE this deterioration occurs, which leads us to sealcoat roads that are in generally good condition rather than waiting for them to deteriorate to the point that extensive patching is necessary. 

Washboards are caused by the repeated small horizontal forces from vehicle tires interacting with the surface of the road. The most common location for washboards is near intersetions where traffic frequently starts and stops.