City crews showed off the City’s latest toy this morning – the $225,000 Bagela Asphalt Recycler

Prince George, B.C. – The City of Prince George unveiled its new toy today at the City Works Yard on 18^th Avenue – the $225,000 Bagela Asphalt Recycler.

The City says the new tool will help to ensure longer-lasting patches – even before paving season begins later this spring.

“It’ll just allow us to get a better-quality mix quicker, so that we can patch more potholes in the shoulder season when hot mix is readily available,” said Mick Jones, the City’s supervisor of road operations.

Prior to the new purchase, he said crews would purchase material in the fall and then load it in hot boxes – or the units that transport the asphalt – and it would take anywhere from six to 10 hours to heat it up to a workable, pliable temperature before going out to patch potholes. Depending on the size of the potholes, they’d have to repeat that process.

“So, we weren’t getting out as frequently to patch potholes just because it was too long to heat it.”

Jones also said the number of potholes this year is down significantly from the past few years.

From Jan. 1 – March 21 this year, 1,530 potholes were filled. That compares to 4,981 over the same time period last year and 7,133 over the same time frame in 2015.

So, why the drop?

“Lots of factors feed into that – the weather has been seasonably better than it has been in the last freeze/thaw cycles and there’s been less rain,” he said.