The maintenance division of the highway department is responsible for roadway maintenance, snow removal, tile crossing repair, bridge and culvert repair, ditch cleaning, dust control and roadway signing. The main maintenance shop is located at 1995 Euclid Ave north of Waverly.

Roadway Maintenance

Contractors are hired to do resurfacing, crack sealing and pavement markings on the paved surfaced roads. Granular surfaced roads are maintained by application of rock either through the annual contract rock program or by spot rock applied as needed by County personnel. Bremer County is divided into 10 zones with each zone operator being responsible for the blading and maintenance of nearly 60 miles of granular surfaced roads in addition to the paved roads in their zone. The zone operators work out of the main shop or one of four outlying shops throughout Bremer County.

Snow Removal

Each snow or ice storm has its own characteristics and must be dealt with accordingly. Hard surfaced roads are the first to be opened following a snowstorm and these roads will be treated for ice conditions. Granular surfaced roads are normally not treated for ice. Bremer County tries to get all areas of the County open to at least one lane traffic as quickly as possible after a snow event. Wind, freezing and thawing often hamper the County’s attempts to keep roads open and hard surfaced roads free of ice.

Tile Crossings

It is the County’s responsibility to maintain drainage tile that cross the roadway. A permit must be issued by the Engineer’s office prior to installing tile crossing any County road or before placing a tile outlet or inlet in the road right of way.

Bridge and Culvert Repair

County personnel repair and maintain the County’s bridges and culverts. Bremer County’s bridge crew replaces 5 or 6 bridges and culverts each construction season. According to Iowa Code any project costing more than $65,000 must be let to contractors.

Ditch Cleaning

Road ditches are used for snow storage during the winter. These ditches are cleaned to maintain and improve roadway drainage. Prior to cleaning any ditch Iowa One Call has to be notified for any utilities in the area. Dirt in the ditch belongs to the County and will be disposed of as they see fit. Notify the Engineer’s office if ditches in your area need to be cleaned.

Dust Control

Bremer County only puts down dust control on haul routes or on roads established as detours. Bremer County residents must obtain a dust control permit from the Engineer’s office prior to putting down dust control or hiring a vendor to put down dust control. After obtaining your permit, county personnel will prepare your road for the dust control and will not blade through the area as long as it is maintained in an acceptable manner by the county resident. Permits are normally valid until the first part of October when the County starts to ready the roads for winter.

Roadway Signing

Bremer County has approximately 6,017 traffic control signs on county roads including 497 stop signs. It costs Bremer County taxpayers almost $125 to replace a damaged or stolen stop sign. Report sign damage to the County Engineer’s office during regular business hours or to the Law Center after hours.