Page 56 - TransportationPlanUsetsGuide

Roadway pavement conditions vary throughout the County, although the overall network condition is classified as fair or
above. Roadway maintenance is largely funded through State of Oregon gas tax revenues for urban arterials, urban col-
lectors, and all rural roads. The Urban Road Maintenance District provides funding for roadway maintenance on urban
Local Streets and urban Neighborhood Routes. Although these revenues have been sufficient to fund most roadway
maintenance needs in the past, it has become increasingly difficult for Washington County to adequately fund needed
road maintenance due to:

• Improved vehicle fuel efficiency resulting in lower gas tax revenues,
• Infrequent gas tax increases that have not kept up with the rate of inflation,
• Steadily increasing fuel prices that results in lower fuel sales and lower tax generation, and
• Reduction in the average vehicle miles traveled (VMT) by residents resulting from changing travel patterns
and public service campaigns such as “Drive Less/Save More”.

The County has been able to manage maintenance of the transportation system by utilizing the Road Maintenance
Priority Matrix, which was initially adopted with the 1988 Washington County Transportation Plan. This matrix provides
guidance to the County to maintain the “major system” first in order to maximize the funds available for road and bridge
repairs. Mandated emergency and hazard types of activities receive the highest priority designation, regardless of func-
tional classification. For general maintenance, minor improvements and reconstruction activities, a road with the higher
functional classification generally has priority over a road with a lower functional classification designation to ensure
that roads that play the most vital role in moving people and goods throughout the county are prioritized over other
roads for general maintenance, minor improvements, and reconstruction.

Pavement Condition Index
To adequately maintain the many miles of roads under its jurisdiction, Washington County uses a computerized pave-
ment management system to monitor and evaluate the condition of its paved roads. Arterial and collector roads are
visually inspected and their surface condition assessed every two years, while Neighborhood Routes and Local Roads
are inspected every four years. Based on this assessment, each road or roadway segment is assigned a Pavement Con-
dition Index (PCI) score and grouped into one of the following five condition categories:
• Very Good Condition - Pavement structure is stable, with no cracking, patching, or deformation evident.
Roadways in this category are usually new or recently constructed (average PCI of 85-100).
• Good Condition – Pavement structure is stable, but may have surface erosion or minor hairline cracking,
patching or deformation. Riding qualities are still very good (average PCI of 70-84).

• Fair Condition - Pavement structure is generally stable with minor areas of structural weakness. Cracking is
easier to detect and pavement might be patched, but not excessively. Riding quality is good, but deforma-
tion is more pronounced and more easily noticed (average PCI of 55-69).
• Poor Condition - Roadway has areas of instability, marked evidence of structural deficiency, large cracking
patterns known as “alligatoring,” heavy and numerous patching and very noticeable deformation. Riding
quality ranges from acceptable to poor. Spot repair of the pavement base may be required (average PCI of
25-54).
• Very Poor Condition – Costs of saving the pavement structural section would equal or exceed complete
reconstruction (average PCI of 0-24).

The average 2011 PCI for all roads in a particular functional classification, as compared to the target PCI, is shown in
Table 3.7. The system average PCI of 81 indicates that the County’s overall road system is in Good condition, and all
functional classifications meet or exceed their target PCI, except for the urban and rural Arterial classifications. While
the Arterial classifications fall slightly short of their targets, they still fall in the Good condition rating range.

44 PART 3: TRANSPORTATION MODAL ELEMENTS
Effective November 27, 2015 • Updated December, 15 2016