2021 Secondary Roads Year in Review

LINN COUNTY
SECONDARY ROAD DEPARTMENT

YEAR IN REVIEW

2021

2021 LETTER FROM THE ENGINEER

Welcome to the 2021 Year in Review for the Linn County Secondary Road Department. Similar to 2020,
2021 was a year of dealing with ‘newer’ normals and uncertainty. The one certainty that I am proud of is
our ability to work together as a department and our ‘get it done’ attitude. We are a team that starts each
day in nine different locations around Linn County. Imagine a football team practicing in multiple locations
throughout the week and all showing up on game day to play as a team. Overcoming these challenges is a
testament to the high levels of trust, communication, and work ethic our team exhibits here at the
Secondary Road Department.
Priorities for 2021 continued to strengthen our department mission of Making Good Roads with Good
People. What we do, who we do it for, and why we do it remained the focal point in aligning our activities
with the three Linn County strategic outcomes: Customer Satisfaction, Quality of Life, and Financial
Health.
Remembering where we have been in the past will help guide us in the future. We are ready for 2022!

Brad Ketels
Linn County Engineer

Every year, the team of Secondary Road employees creates products that work toward the common
goal: Make Good Roads with Good People. Maintaining and managing assets including bridges, culverts,
rock roads, paved roads, roadsides, equipment, and signs would not be possible without the most
important asset - our people!
A knowledgeable and experienced team collaborates to align department activities with the Linn County
mission of providing all customers the most satisfying products while maintaining sound fiscal
management in order to enhance the quality of life in Linn County.

2

2021 BUDGET BREAKDOWN

Residents often ask, how much does the Secondary Road Department receive from property taxes?
Property taxes paid for a property assessed at $200,000 in rural Linn County is approximately $3,000, of
which $287 (10%) of that goes to the Secondary Road Department. For perspective, the $287 pays for just
over one load of rock. The Board of Supervisors transfers the maximum amount allowed to the Secondary
Road Department through property taxes. These transfers are known as the General Fund Transfer and
Rural Fund Transfer.

2021 REVENUE SOURCES

Tax Levy: $6,046,823
Road Use Tax Fund (RUTF): $8,413,233
Local Option Sales Tax (LOST):
$4,251,734
Regional Planning Affiliation (RPA) for
Region 10: $650,000
Farm-to-Market (FM): $2,500,000
Highway Bridge Program (HBP): $360,000

2021 TOP EXPENDITURES

Contract Construction: $8,406,488
Salary and Benefits: $6,324,779
Rock: $2,124,605
New Equipment: $1,120,464
Equipment Operations/Parts: $870,279
Dust Control: $516,603
Seal Coat and Patching Materials:
$511,464
Snow and Ice Material: $273,291

3

2021 ROAD & BRIDGE
IMPROVEMENTS

Linn County Secondary Roads is responsible for just over 1,150 miles of roads and 254 bridges. Iowa
Code 309.22 requires counties to create a five-year construction program each year by April 15. The road
construction program includes a project accomplishment list for the next fiscal year and a project priority
list for the succeeding four fiscal years.

The current road construction program focuses on the bridge system and preserving the condition of the
paved road network. A copy of the current five-year program can be found at
LinnCountyIowa.gov/Engineer.

Linn County crews complete the majority of the plans, project inspection, and related project
documentation required for these projects. The 19 completed contract projects from 2021 are
summarized below.

2021 TOTAL CONTRACT CONSTRUCTION COST

A total of $10.7 million was spent in 2021 on the following projects:

2 miles of asphalt paving 4 bridge repairs on Springville Road, Austin
10 miles of concrete paving Road, Sisley Grove Road, and Mount Vernon
4 miles of grading Road
1 bridge replacement on Burnett Station Road 4 culvert replacements
69 miles of pavement markings 3,300 cubic yards of debris removed from
creeks

E AVENUE NW

A grading project on E Avenue NW, from the HWY 100 interchange
west to Benton County, added mileage to the 3-mile grid system.
This system designates roads that provide for a hard surface or
upgraded rock surface at intervals no further than 3 miles in rural
Linn County. This four-mile project is planned for seal coat in 2022
and will provide an alternate route from Benton County to the HWY
100 interchange.

Pictured right: E Ave. project in process.

Sign up for construction notifications at
LinnCountyIowa.gov/NotifyMe.

4

2021 ROAD & BRIDGE
IMPROVEMENTS

Nearly 20% of all bridges in the state of Iowa are in poor condition, which puts the state in the bottom
three states for this metric. It is a priority for Linn County to do our part in lowering this percentage by
improving the secondary road infrastructure. Out of the 254 bridges the Linn County Secondary Road
Department is responsible for, 21 (or 8.2%) of them are considered to be in poor condition, which doesn't
mean they are unsafe, but rather they need to be monitored, inspected, and maintained/rehabilitated.

There are a number of factors that affect the lifespan of a bridge such as, types of materials used,
exposure to harmful materials (road salt), and the number and weight of vehicles crossing the bridge.
With an expected service life of 75 years, Linn County would need to replace at least three bridges each
year to keep pace.

IN 2021...

$666,753 1 4 36 YEARS

Spent on Bridges Bridge Replaced Bridges Repaired Average Age of
in 2021 Our Bridges

Before: Bridge on Springville Road After: Bridge on Springville Road

DID YOU KNOW?

Linn County Secondary Roads is responsible for just over 1,150 miles of roads and 254 bridges. That's
the equivalent of driving from Cedar Rapids to Nashville and back!

5

2021 COUNTY HOME ROAD PROJECT

The word “collaboration” best describes the multi-year County Home Road improvement project that was
completed in 2021. The nearly $8 million project was made possible with funding from six sources, four
entities (City of Robins, City of Cedar Rapids, Iowa DOT, Linn County), and several work teams.
Linn County Secondary Road crews constructed a retaining wall, finished grading various locations,
planted native seeds at the roundabouts, worked with property owners on entrance conformance, and
has accepted maintenance responsibilities of the County Home Road corridor.
The main focus of the project was to improve the safety of the road for all users. The addition of right and
left turn lanes, two roundabouts with truck aprons for oversize loads, and new pavement all contribute to
the new, safer experience.

Completed roundabout at C Ave

DID YOU KNOW?

Native vegetation was planted in the center of the roundabouts to create additional habitat for monarchs
and other native species. These plantings are strong and weed-resistant that adapt to roadside
conditions and provide a variety of services including enhancing rainfall infiltration, slowing runoff,
trapping sediment, and reducing erosion.

6

2021 WINTER OPERATIONS

The Linn County Secondary Road Department's responsiveness to winter storms and route coverage has
increased over the past three years. Tracking important metrics for each event has allowed us to make
data driven decisions with regards to our snow response. The metrics tracked include: cost per event;
materials used; weather conditions; snowfall depth; number of events; and the costs or labor, overtime,
and equipment.

With our increased response, the cost per winter event increased from approximately $44,000/event in
2019-2020 to $71,000/event in 2020-2021. Each event is unique and tracking this number provides us
with a rough overall number that is used in planning for future years.

WINTER WEATHER EVENT IMPROVEMENTS INCLUDE:

Expanding priority response to include all hard surface roads, which added nine truck routes
expanding the total number of routes to 30. Priority response is outside normal working hours (4-7:30
a.m. and 3:30-6 p.m. Monday-Friday and 4 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends and holidays).
Partnering with the City of Cedar Rapids by allowing the City use of the Walford shop to store winter
mix material to better serve their snow routes in the SW section of Cedar Rapids. In addition, the City
provides winter mix materials for use by both City and County truck routes.

Blowing snow on Central City Road Snow blower on Gibney Road

DID YOU KNOW?

All winter weather related vehicles and equipment are equipped with automatic vehicle locating (AVL)
technology. This technology allows the Secondary Road Department to increase route efficiency,
coverage, and safety, as well as gather other vehicle maintenance related metrics allowing us to keep our
equipment in top shape for winter weather event response.

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2021 SERVING OUR CUSTOMERS

Work completed by Linn County Secondary Road crews benefits more than the residents and taxpayers
of Linn County. While this group may represent a majority of the customer base, work completed also
benefits other jurisdictions, emergency services, visitors, and others who use the secondary road system
throughout Linn County. From beginning to end, the goal is to provide a satisfying experience for all.

The Linn County Secondary Road Department uses a work request system to assist with addressing
customers' needs and concerns regarding the road system. In 2021, the department received 1,078 work
requests and responded to 87% of these requests within 24 hours.

Please call 319-892-6400 or email [email protected] to submit a work request.

TOP WORK REQUESTS 232

71 Snow and ice
responses
Traffic sign
requests/repairs

106 200

Illegal dumping Road condition
responses requests

72 83

Dead deer responses Dust control
requests
75
8
Ditch mowing/brush
cutting/drainage
requests

2021 SAFETY & TECHNOLOGY

SAFETY

Safety is always top of mind during daily work and all road projects for Linn County Secondary Road
crews. Our safety work for roadsides includes paved shoulders, rumble strips, clearing right-of-way for
obstructions, flattening foreslopes, safety edge, dust control, and ensuring compliance through the permit
process.

Shoulder discing Stop sign installation Native seeding

TECHNOLOGY & DATA COLLECTION

The Linn County Secondary Road Department increases our use of data and the amount of data we
collect each year. Items such as budgets, asset information, and project documentation are all tracked
and assessed to help improve event response, construction project completion, and maintenance
activities. The addition recent of a GIS technician will help us put the data collected to use in the coming
years.

PUBLIC OUTREACH & COMMUNICATION

Linn County is committed to providing informative and timely updates to the public through a variety of
ways, including digital platforms and more traditional means. Road construction and maintenance is
consistently one of the most popular engagement topics with residents. In 2021, text and email updates
were regularly sent to subscribers to keep them up to date on our road work projects, and we saw a 44%
increase in the number of subscribers to our Snow Removal Updates. Our Facebook post announcing the
opening of County Home Road reached 105,000 people. We distributed more than 30,000 copies of our
bi-annual Routes Newsletter directly to residents in the unincorporated areas via the Penny Saver. Our
website continues to be the information hub where we provide our annual and five-year construction
plans, snow removal routes, policies and permits, an interactive road closure map, and more. Visit Linn
County’s website today and sign up for updates at LinnCountyIowa.gov.

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2021 BY THE NUMBERS

The administration side of the Linn County Secondary Road Department plays a huge role in achieving
our mission of making ‘Good Roads with Good People'. The activities and numbers listed below provide
an overview of what goes on behind the scenes at the Road Department.

FY21 PERMITS ISSUED CONTRACTS

130 84

Utility Permits Rock Contracts

342 32

Entrance Permits Purchase Order Contracts

130 DATABASE ENTRIES

Trip Permits 1,025

172 Rock Hauled and Applied To

Annual Trip Permits 3,129

436 Claims

Dust Control Permits Line items processed for payment

69 81

Work in ROW Permits Receipts

72 Line items processed for deposit

E-911 Permits AGREEMENTS

3 8

No Spray Permit Property Owner Agreements

12 51

Adopt-A-Roadside Zoning Agreements
Permits
10