By Jennifer Vazquez / Reporter
(June 3, 2010) — The latest addition to the shared-services initiative of the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission, the state agency that has zoning rights over the wetlands, will not only save area municipalities some extra money but it looks to improve the bumpy concrete terrain of local roads as well.
“The NJMC’s shared-services program reflects the commission’s ongoing commitment to helping district towns reduce costs,” NJMC Executive Director Robert Ceberio said. “By providing our equipment and services to Meadowlands communities we can help reduce local tax burdens while contributing to residents’ quality of life.”
During the Wednesday, May 26 meeting of the NJMC, officials announced that the latest addition to the shared-services program is a contraption known as the “pothole killer” — a high-tech pothole filler that completes a job that normally takes hours in just a couple of seconds or minutes. Several municipalities, including Rutherford, have already signed up to use the “pothole killer,” according to Lori Grifa, chairwoman of the NJMC.
The commission will rent the machine for a three-month trial period. Although district municipalities will be asked to contribute toward the cost of materials, the shared-service arrangement will still save towns thousands of dollars during the summer, when they need to fill potholes and repair road surfaces.
“We plan to have the machine available starting in June and the company will train NJMC staff to operate the system,” said commission spokesman Brian Aberback.
North Arlington Council President Richard Hughes said his borough is also seeking to be part of the local municipalities who take advantage of the newly-added shared service. “I believe we are in the process of getting to be a part of that,” Hughes said. “The Meadowlands (Commission) is renting (the ‘pothole killer’) for a period of time and making it readily available. Our DPW now is putting together a list of the more serious potholes that would require something along that nature — not the arbitrary little pothole where you can just go out and put some patch into it, but the bigger ones.”
The new machine also offers a number of safety and environmental benefits.
Some of the positive features regarding the “PK200 spray-injection patching system” include its use of recycled rubber material and other non-hazardous materials to fill potholes. Another safety benefit is the eradication of workers standing on the road during the application process, since the machine is operated from inside a vehicle. Lastly, the filling materials are delivered to the work site by the company as needed — this ultimately reduces the need for storage and staging space nearby, according to Aberback.
“I think this is a wonderful opportunity and I’m pleased that we’re able to do this,” Grifa said at the NJMC meeting. “I’m thrilled that we’re able to provide a service that will be useful to the 14 Meadowlands District towns.”
The commission will rent the pothole truck for just under $9,000 per month. The actual cost to towns will depend upon the amount of participation and use.
The “pothole killer” joins a growing list of shared equipment available to district municipalities through the NJMC. They include a camera truck with the capability of taking video footage of sewer lines to detect the exact location and source of problems, a jet-vac truck used to remove any clogging material obstructing the sewer or storm lines, a trailer-mounted light tower with four 1,000-watt rotating lights allowing emergency crews to work at night, a root cutter that allows workers to shred tree roots barricading the sewer lines and two Dri-Prime pumps used for draining flood waters, according to Aberback.
Normally, it would cost a town roughly $1,500 a day to rent a camera truck and anywhere from $1,500 to $2,200 a day to rent a jet-vac truck.
