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Record-tying May temperatures cause suburban roads to buckle and crack

Record-tying heat in the Chicago suburbs has road crews dealing with a problem they don't usually see until much later in the summer: buckling pavement.

According to the National Weather Service, Sunday's high temperature of 97 degrees matched the hottest during the month of May since 1934. It also was the highest temperature reached at any time of the year since 2012.

https://i.dailyherald.com/public-service/2018/MayHeat/

All that heat wreaked havoc on roads from DuPage County to Wisconsin last weekend.

In Naperville, a four-mile section of Route 59 had closures for hours while crews repaired ripped concrete. Schaumburg closed parts of Meacham and Roselle roads for the same problem. And drivers traveling for Memorial Day ran into problems while commuting in Wisconsin.

"We had snow last month, and we've got 90-degree temps this month, so it really is kind of interesting," said Mike Hall, interim director of engineering and public works in Schaumburg.

The three-day stretch of 90-degree temperatures over the weekend was the earliest such period since 1977. That caused problems that suburban road workers don't usually encounter until much later in the summer.

Hall said roads begin to buckle and crack when the temperatures reach 90 degrees. The high temperature makes material expand, pushing slabs of concrete together and causing buckling at joints in the road, he said.

Car damage from buckling roads is similar to what's caused by potholes - flat tires, chipped rims and suspension problems.

"I have seen some on the tollway that popped up significantly, which can be jarring to the motoring public," Hall said.

  Record-tying temperatures for May have caused pavement buckling on several suburban roads. This section of Roselle Road, just north of Wise Road in Schaumburg, has been repaired. Joe Lewnard/jlewnard@dailyherald.com

Road crews are usually able to temporarily fix buckling roads quickly by covering the area with asphalt. Later, they return to cut out the broken pavement and repour concrete as part of longer-term capital improvement projects, Hall said.

Drivers should continue to be on the lookout for buckled roads during the next several days, though the high temperatures will diminish as thunderstorms move into the area. According to the National Weather Service, the high will be about 79 degrees Wednesday but will approach 90 degrees again Thursday.

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