Street Pavement Condition

How well are we maintaining our local streets?

Definition:

Street pavement condition, more commonly referred to as the pavement condition index (PCI), reflects the quality of pavement on the region’s city streets and county roads. Calculated using a three-year moving average, PCI ranges from zero (failed) to 100 (brand-new) and has been used as a regional indicator of pavement preservation for over a decade.

The Bay Area’s local streets and roads form the foundation of the regional transportation system, providing access to jobs, homes, schools, shopping and recreation for motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians alike. Preserving these facilities is essential to avoid the development of potholes. While pavement conditions in the region have remained remarkably stable on a year-to-year basis, actions to preserve local streets are evident on the city and county levels.

Bay Area streets have an average PCI of 67, indicating fair regional pavement conditions overall

San Francisco County had the biggest improvement in PCI since 2010, gaining four points

Dublin has the region’s smoothest streets, at a PCI of 85

Orinda, St. Helena, East Palo Alto and Cupertino had the biggest improvements in three-year moving average PCI in 2016, each gaining five points

Regional Performance

The regional average PCI score held steady at 67 in 2017, with roads in the region rated as fair overall.

PCI has been relatively stable for the past decade, but it ticked upward to a new high of 67 in 2017 after years of stagnant performance, indicating that the typical local street or road is slightly smoother. Regional scores for street and road conditions have been generally stable for some time, ranging from 64 to 67 for the past decade. This puts our local streets and roads in “fair” condition. While local governments continue to work to improve their pavement condition, aging infrastructure remains a challenge for the region.

While the regional trend has been relatively stable in recent years, performance gains are more evident at the county level. San Francisco and Marin counties have registered the biggest improvements in PCI since 2010, gaining four and three points, respectively. Roads in Alameda, Napa and San Mateo counties have also seen improvement in PCI during the same period, while Contra Costa and Santa Clara counties have experienced slight declines in their countywide average PCI scores.

Historical Trend for Street Pavement Condition - Bay Area

Regional Distribution

Most cities’ pavement conditions have changed only marginally over the past decade.

The majority of Bay Area cities and towns have seen minimal shifts in their pavement conditions over the past ten years. For example, many of the region’s most populous cities – including San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland and Fremont – have only shifted by a few PCI points over the past decade. Yet there have also been some success stories, particularly in smaller jurisdictions like Rio Vista, Suisun City and East Palo Alto.

2016 Street Pavement Condition Distribution by City

Local Focus

Pavement conditions vary widely — not only from street to street, but also from city to city.

Pavement in the region’s two largest cities – San Jose and San Francisco – falls squarely into the “fair” range of the PCI scale. This performance level is not unique to the largest jurisdictions; some three-quarters of Bay Area cities have PCIs ranging from 60 to 79 (reflecting fair or good conditions). Notable exceptions include the region’s third most populous city, Oakland, along with its neighbors Berkeley and San Leandro – all of which have “at risk” PCIs between 50 and 59.

North Bay communities dominate the list of Bay Area communities with the lowest PCI scores. Among these are Larkspur, Petaluma, Vallejo and Cotati. Some of the region’s smoothest roads can be found in East Bay cities such as Brentwood, Dublin and El Cerrito. Not surprisingly, superior pavement conditions are often found in newer communities, where many streets were constructed in the last 20 years or so.

2018 Street Pavement Condition by City and by Street Segment

Segment Details

Sources:

Metropolitan Transportation Commission: StreetSaver (2003-2016)

Image: MTC Library (ID# Draper-55)

Methodology Notes:

Pavement condition index (PCI) relies upon a three-year moving average for regional, county, and city PCI to improve the reliability of the PCI data on an annual basis. The index ranges from 0 to 100, with 0 representing a failed road and 100 representing a brand-new facility. Segment PCI data is collected on a rolling basis but is imputed for interim years based on facility age and treatments using the MTC StreetSaver system. Due to the lack of reported PCI data in 2006, the city of Palo Alto is not included in the Regional Distribution chart.