While some counties are turning toward plowing up paved roads to convert them to gravel, Dallas County Probate Judge Kim Ballard said that is not the case in Dallas County. Paved roads, he said, will remain paved.

Currently, Ballard said Dallas County has about 500 miles of paved roads, with very few gravel roads.

“We are nowhere near close to having to plow up any of our paved roads and go back to gravel,” he said. “Maintaining our paved roads can be a challenge, especially with some of the weather we have had, but we are staying on top of it.”

Staying on top of needed repairs to paved roads presents a challenge, Ballard said. But crews work hard to keep up.

“Our road department does an excellent job of keeping up with repairs,” he said. “We rotate from district to district and try to keep up with them. A lot of that depends on how much money we get back from the state on the gas tax as well.”

When tax revenues are not up to par, Ballard said the county has to sometimes pull money from the general fund. However, he said, this is rare.

The commissioners of all four Dallas County districts do a great job of riding the roads to get a first hand look at their conditions, Ballard said. And, he added, their constituents keep an open line as well.

“They keep our commissioners and the road department informed and our commissioners work very hard to stay on top of things,” he said. “Really, on paper, it’s a part-time job, but I doubt that a day goes by that they don’t do something related to the post.”

In the spring, Ballard said he and the board hope to pave something in each district. But, inflation, he said, has not made the task of repairing county roads any easier.

“We are almost totally dependent on the gas tax money and sometimes there just isn’t enough,” he said. “I’m not advocating an increase in the gas tax. We are taxed enough as it is, but we are going to have to do something eventually.”

Maintaining paved roads is a constant challenge, Ballard said, but each commissioner knows it is their duty to keep Dallas County moving forward.

“It’s a challenge,” he said. “Road costs are going to increase along with fuel prices. It’s going to be a challenge, but we are up for it.”