Road resurfacing substance coats cars traveling on Northfield highway

Car owners were left with a sticky mess after traveling Highway 19 near Northfield Saturday because of a miscalculation in the use of bonding agent by a road repair contractor.

The owner of Astech Corp. tells KARE 11 that the contractor will accept full responsibility for the clean-up of the cars sprayed with a road resurfacing substance that didn't get time to dry on the road properly.

Minnesota Department of Transportation Public Affairs Coordinator Mike Dougherty tells the Northfield News that the storm "was an unanticipated issue" and "the rain was the component that made this go incorrectly.”

Astech's Bruce Batzen tells KARE that the road sealant normally needs an hour to dry properly, but since storms hit the area and added water to the substance, vehicles were coated with the chemical.

Batzen tells the station that there are many solvents available that will remove the oily, tar-like substance on cars without damaging the vehicle's paint.

As of Monday afternoon, MnDOT reportedly received about 250 calls from car owners affected by the mess.

Astech says car owners whose vehicles were coated by the road sealant can contact the company at 320-363-8500.

MnDOT tells the Northfield News that the state has worked with Astech before and hasn't had any problems with the company to this point. Currently, MnDOT says, Astech is working on several projects across southern Minnesota.

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