A post on social media last week announcing that Bedford County Highway Department will have a contractor doing roadside weed management on over 200 miles of county roads for the next few weeks prompted several comments and questions. Highway Superintendent Mark Clanton has provided some additional information, which we hope will answer some of the questions:
Major reasons for Highway right-of-way vegetation management practices include:
1. To maintain the integrity of the paved surface
2. To prevent or reduce erosion
3. To provide for the safety of the traveling public
4. To provide for efficient maintenance practices
5. To maintain drainage
6. To provide beauty to roadsides
Vegetation management, along with the transportation system, consists of promoting and control of vegetation. Control of vegetation growth may be accomplished by a combination of physical and chemical methods.
Physical methods include the tractor mowing on the roadside and weed trimming around guardrail areas. Chemical methods include the application of governmentally approved herbicides to control specific vegetation problems such as Johnson grass and other grass that grows to impede the safety of motorists.
Bedford County’s herbicide program is based upon extensive research for chemicals which will provide the desired control of the target grass species. The use of herbicides is a key element to be used in combination with physical vegetation control methods to manage right of way vegetation.
If the public maintains their property to the road they will not spray in those areas. If you wish for the area in front of your residence to not be sprayed, please mow and weed eat your property to the existing road.
Crews mow the 685 miles of county roads a total of seven or eight times each year.
