The Dallas County Secondary Roads Department was recently approved for some large purchases.

At the most recent Board of Supervisors meeting, County Engineer Al Miller presented two separate purchase requests. The first was for four new tandem axle trucks to replace existing vehicles in the roads department fleet. Miller said they looked around and considered bids from dealers for both Volvo and Mack models. The best bid was from Housby Mack in Des Moines, for a total price of $925,052. The older trucks will not be traded in, and instead Miller plans to sell them using an online auction site called Purple Wave, which he has used in the past. The trucks will be used for winter road maintenance.

The other purchase was for a tile line jetter, which is also replacing an existing piece of equipment. The machine is used for culvert and drainage tile repairs, as well as other maintenance for the roads department. The bid accepted was $80,488 from Mid-Iowa Solid Waste Equipment in Des Moines, which includes the trade-in of the old jetter. Each of the purchases will be paid for as normal budgeted items for the Secondary Roads Department.