Boulder County, Colo. – The Boulder County Transportation Department will apply chip seal to six county roads beginning this Monday, Aug. 8.

2011 chip seal schedule:

Week of August 8
• Eldora Ski Road
• North 75th Street from Baseline Road to Jay Road

Week of Aug. 15
• Valmont Road from 55th Street to 61st Street
• 61st Street / Andrus Road / 63rd Street from Valmont Road to Jay Road
• Airport Road from Highway 119 to Glenneyre Drive

Week of Aug. 22
• North 95th Street from Lookout Road to Niwot Road

Additionally, all chip sealed roads will receive fog coating during the week of Aug. 29.

Schedules are subject to change due to weather and other factors and the projects will cause minor traffic delays. Visit www.BoulderCounty.org/Transportation for updates.

With the exception of the Eldora Ski Road, all roads will be sealed with smaller, quarter-inch chips that provide a smoother surface. The county switched last year to the smaller chips from the standard 3/8-inch chips to increase rideability for cyclists and motorists. Fog coating also helps to create a smoother surface.

“Our new chipping product and process has made a significant positive impact on the ride experience, Boulder County Transportation Director George Gerstle said. “However, there will still be impacts and cyclists should expect poorer riding conditions on these roads for the next four weeks.”

Applying chip seal to county roads is a cost-effective means of extending their life. Adding stone chips to pavement after it has sat for more than five years extends the pavement life considerably, allowing for more use of the original overlay. Additionally, the cost of chipping a road is a small fraction of the cost of new paving and chip sealing uses less oil and less material than paving.