Contractors will be busy the next two months giving face-lifts to some rural Douglas County roads.

In mid-August workers will begin chip-and-seal operations on 13 road sections covering more than 40 miles, County Engineer Keith Browning said. The work areas are scattered throughout the county and involve sections ranging from half a mile to 6.5 miles long.

Chipping and sealing involves spraying emulsified asphalt on the road and then applying rock chips to the surface, Browning said.

“All you are doing is sealing the surface of the road to seal cracks and prohibit moisture from entering them,” he said.

The rocks used are manufactured, expanded shale.

“They are lightweight to keep windshield-cracking and dust problems to a minimum,” Browning said.

Chipping and sealing operations are expected to cost about $600,000, he said.

Also on the road maintenance list is County Road 1023 from the west city limits of Lecompton to County Road 1029 on the east side of town. The half-mile section is also Lecompton’s Woodson Street. A 2-inch mill and overlay project is planned.

Workers will remove 2 inches of the road surface and then refill it with asphalt. The project’s cost is estimated at $106,000.

In the future a more comprehensive repair plan will be needed for the Lecompton road, Browning said.

The county also plans a mill-and-overlay project for a 1-mile section of County Road 1045 from Midland Junction 2 miles north of Lawrence to the Jefferson County line. Estimated cost is $126,000.

Surface problems on County Road 1029 from the Franklin County line to U.S. Highway 56 will require “hot-in-place” recycling work, Browning said. Workers heat the road then scarify the top 1.5 inches of the surface. The scarified material is picked up, processed with a rejuvenator solution, mixed with new asphalt and put back down over the surface. The cost to work on the 3-mile section of road is estimated at $246,000.

Contractor bid solicitations are being prepared for the mill and overlay and hot-in-place recycling. The bids will be opened in late August and work should begin sometime in September, Browning said.