Buckingham Road Work

With warmer weather right around the corner, Buckingham Township is getting ready to hit the roads - sprucing them up in the process.

Recently, the board of supervisors agreed to buy some equipment and material and also awarded a road improvement project to a Pipersville firm.

The bid to overlay asphalt on almost 7 miles of township roadway went to Miller and Son Paving for $364,500, which was the lowest bid. Bids submitted for that project went as high as almost $444,000.

Portions of four roads – Lower Mountain, Holicong, Landisville and Skyrun Drive – are included in the project.

Roadwork probably will start in June and is expected to finish in a few weeks time, said Nick DeMeno, public works director.

Additionally, supervisors authorized the purchase of a new asphalt compactor for the public works department. The item was included in this year’s budget.

The township’s current one, a 1975 model, is in poor condition, according to township manager Dana Cozza.

“We can try to sell it, if we can,” she told supervisors. Given the age and condition, she added, “We don’t have too much hope, but you never know.”

The life expectancy for a compactor, also called a roller, is 20 years, she said.

Cost for the 2011 Caterpillar 47-inch, double-drum vibrating roller is $34,400. The township didn’t have to secure bids, since the fixed price was determined through state contracts.

The roller will be used for base repairs on roads and the township’s bike path.

Additionally, supervisors approved buying stone and asphalt as well as signs and posts through the Bucks County Consortium. The purchases would be made on an as needed basis. The consortium allows member municipalities to get the best prices on road materials, for instance, through bulk purchasing power.

Also, the street sweeping contract with RMC Clean Sweep of Buckingham was extended a year. The cost remains the same at $8,600.

DeMeno said the company plans to start sweeping parking lots of the township parks in the next week, then visit developments and any intersections, often those in high traffic areas, that are really in need of cleaning.

All the developments on their radar will be done in the spring, he said.

“We like to get in there and clean them up of all the stones, leaves and debris before summer. And then as needed.”

In other public works matters, the township also has placed Pineville Road bridge documents on its website.

Readers can download several items: the initial presentation given at the March 23 work session; beam color and stone choices; the preliminary guide rail plan; and the bridge plan sheet.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation currently is in the design phase of the $1.2 million project, which will replace the now-closed bridge with a new one scheduled for construction in 2012.