Jan 5, 2009 4:44 pm US/Pacific
Condition Of Bay Area Roads 'Fair,' Report Finds
(BCN)
The pavement conditions of the Bay Area's 42,000 miles of streets and roads remain in fair condition, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission said in a report released Monday.
The average pavement condition index score in the 2005-2007 period edged up only one point to 65 since the 2004-2006 period, the MTC said. The maximum possible score is 100.
The worst pavement condition scores were in Sonoma and Marin counties, Suisun City and Rio Vista in Solano County, and in Orinda, Richmond and El Cerrito.
The greatest decreases in pavement quality were in St. Helena, Pacifica, Newark, Dixon and East Palo Alto, according to the report.
The best pavement conditions are found in Los Altos, Brentwood, Foster City, Santa Clara, Contra Costa County, Gilroy, Dublin, and Oakley and in the City of Sonoma, according to the report.
"The region's current average PCI of 65 places the region's pavement quality in the 'fair' category, which is still dangerously close to the point (PCI of 60) where pavement conditions begin to deteriorate very rapidly," the MTC report said.
The MTC said it costs less money to maintain pavement in good condition, a score between 70 and 79, than it does to repair or replace roads once they go bad.
Once pavement reaches a PCI score of about 60, it begins to deteriorate rapidly and needs more rehabilitation or reconstruction, the MTC report said.
To attain a PCI of 75 by 2035, the region will have to double the current level of investment in pavement maintenance, the MTC said.
While additional funding for roads has not yet been identified, the MTC has directed $7 billion in regional discretionary funding to local roadways over the course of the MTC's Transportation 2035 plan.
"This amount will allow the region to maintain the current state of repair," said Sui Tan, the MTC's StreetSaver program manager.
The pavement of 12 percent of the Bay Area's roads was rated excellent and 23 percent earned a very good rating. Twenty percent were deemed good and 12 percent were rated fair. Ten percent are "at risk" of rapid deterioration, 14 percent were poor and 8 percent failed.
The greatest improvement was in the poor or failed condition where local agencies successfully shaved off three percentage points, the MTC said.
Rather than comparing the pavement conditions annually, the MTC reports them in a three-year moving average, which provides a better picture of how pavement conditions are performing over time.
All 109 Bay area local jurisdictions use the MTC's StreetSaver pavement management software.
"The good news is that we're holding the line on pavement quality. But there's a lot of work that needs to be done, and it's a constant battle against the forces of time, traffic and weather," MTC Chair and Napa County Supervisor Bill Dodd said in a news release about the MTC report.
The city of San Mateo boasts the most improved three-year PCI average of 6 percent.
Foster City has consistently registered PCI scores of 80 or higher in recent years and Brentwood claims the best roads in the Bay Area, the MTC said.
(© CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Bay City News contributed to this report.)
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