Heat Causing Issues With Roads In Minnesota

MnDOT

(KNSI) – A scorching summer heat wave is enveloping the region for a second day, and it can cause havoc on our roads.

A Twin Cities highway buckled on Tuesday evening due to a surge in temperatures. The Minnesota Department of Transportation says both lanes of eastbound Highway 610 in Maple Grove, between Interstate 94 and Elm Creek Boulevard, were shut down for several hours as crews made repairs overnight.

Officials say buckling pavement is usually a problem on older roads, highways and interstates. St. Cloud Public Services Director Tracy Hodel told KNSI News the warmth is good for road work, but this heat makes it harder to fix potholes and seal roads. “We’re around that threshold where it’s good temperatures because it’s warm, but then towards the middle of the day when it’s really hot. That’s when you’re going to see where we want to limit that to make sure it’s not too hot when we’re applying those products.”

Hodel says high temperatures cause separation in oils used in the materials to fix the roads. “It just takes longer to cool, right? Because it’s hotter outside. And so with that, you could see some issues with not getting the application that you want because either you open up the road too early, and you have vehicles going over there and picking some of that up on their tires.”

The sweltering weather also takes its toll on the equipment.

Hodel says no roads in St. Cloud have buckled in recent years.

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