The City of Yakima Streets Division will continue its annual chip sealing program on the morning of Monday, July 23rd. Several roads in the southeast section of Yakima, including multiple side streets of Fair Avenue, along with roads in the northwest section of the city, including side streets off of 85th Avenue, will be the focus of the chip sealing program next week.
Crews will chip seal from around 6:30 am to about 3:30 pm Monday through Thursday. Drivers are encouraged to avoid work zones if possible. In order to reduce dust and to keep work crews safe, 20-mile-per-hour speed limits will be strictly enforced on the streets where chip sealing is underway. Access to homes and businesses on the roads to be chip sealed may be restricted for short durations while the work is being done.
Asphalt roads deteriorate over time due to traffic and exposure to sun and wet weather. As a part of the City’s ongoing street maintenance program, chip sealing is done on a periodic basis in order to protect road surfaces from water and weather damage and to keep them in good condition.
Chip sealing helps maintain existing pavement in its present condition by delaying further aging due to water and sun, enhances the texture of a road surface and improves skid resistance, and corrects existing pavement problems by sealing cracks.
The best aspect of chip sealing is simple economics.
Currently, the cost of an asphalt overlay (new blacktop) is about $90,000 per mile. By comparison, the cost for chip sealing is $16,000 a mile. Chip sealing saves taxpayer dollars because it protects the road from deterioration and greatly delays the need for a new asphalt overlay to repair a deteriorated road.