Court discusses shifting road funds, rising heavy-truck damage and a proposed weigh station on US-287

Commissioners discussed road-and-bridge funding, truck-related damage and a proposed weigh station on US-287 during the budget work session Friday.

Why it matters: county officials said heavy commercial traffic and higher axle loads are accelerating road deterioration, increasing repair frequency and upsetting the county’s historic chip-seal cycle. The judge presented a proposed tax-rate shift that would transfer a cent of rate revenue to the road-and-bridge mileage allotment distributed to precincts.

Funding mechanics and options: staff described the road-and-bridge approach used in prior years — a special road-and-bridge tax and a mileage formula distribution to precincts — and noted a longer-term question about whether to move toward a pooled permanent-improvement fund for large projects. Commissioners discussed pros and cons of reserving fund balance at the precinct level versus pooling funds to finance million-dollar projects such as River Road or Hammond Road reconstructions.

Truck traffic and maintenance pressure: multiple commissioners said they are seeing markedly heavier truck traffic, including frequent 80,000–100,000-pound loads, that the county’s roads were not designed to handle. They reported that damage is eroding planned maintenance rotations and leading to repeated repairs.

Proposed weigh station / way station: staff updated the court on a revived proposal for a combined weigh station and DPS way station near Iowa Park on US‑287. Earlier work had suggested the project might be infeasible; new estimates presented to the court put construction between $1.0 million and $1.5 million. The judge said the facility might be structured so the county does not operate it as an enterprise fund; the state (DPS/TxDOT) or another entity could be the owner/operator while the county builds or partners on the asset. Commissioners noted potential enforcement and revenue benefits (fines and citations) and said detailed ownership, maintenance and revenue-allocation terms would be needed before proceeding.

Next steps: the judge placed the weigh-station concept in the capital-improvement plan but signaled the court will require a full project quote and a formal agenda item before committing funds. Road-and-bridge funding mechanics and whether to pool precinct fund balances will be considered in future budget work.

Ending: no final decision was made; commissioners instructed staff to develop project cost estimates and policy options.