Last summer MnDOT put down a thin layer of epoxy chip seal on the Mendota Bridge to make the driving surface less slippery and to keep water from seeping below the concrete and coming in contact with bridge joints.
Not long after, Drive reader Bob noticed that the new topping began to peel off, and the problem has just gotten worse, he said.
"There are now thousands of square feet of missing aggregate," he wrote in an e-mail. He said the problem is concentrated at the middle of the bridge inbound to Minneapolis but is also visible in areas on the east end of the bridge carrying traffic between Fort Snelling and Mendota Heights.
"At one point this spring signs were placed indicating that work was to be done. All that happened was that a few areas were outlined with spray paint and some topping was cut away. As of two days ago there has been no more work done on the repairs and I do not see any orange safety signs being stockpiled near the bridge approaches for future work. It seems to me the contractor [is slow] on repairing the deficient work."
Good news, Bob. MnDOT is aware of the problem and will remedy it this summer. It likely won't happen until work on nearby Hwy. 110 is complete, said spokeswoman Kirsten Klein.
As for why the coating flaked off so soon: "We don't know the exact reason it did not bond. It might have been the quality of the mix or just a bad batch," she said.
The job was under warranty, so the contractor will come back to scrape off the current layer and put down new chip seal at no additional cost to MnDOT or taxpayers.
Staying aware
Don't be alarmed if you see a scad of teenagers in Eden Prairie putting up yellow balloons throughout the city on Tuesday night. It's for a good cause.
