The Bay Area's 44,000 lane miles of roads show signs of persistent wear, with overall pavement conditions remaining steady yet uninspiring. Based on the latest figures, the region's roads have landed 67 out of 100 points for the ninth year in a row on the pavement condition index (PCI), according to a report by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC). This measurement, suggestive of local streets and roads veering into a territory where serious rehabilitation could become necessary, is evocative of a broader struggle in infrastructure maintenance.
MTC Chair and Napa County Supervisor Alfredo Pedroza offered a tempered response to the findings, acknowledging the region's difficulties in elevating road conditions. "But our county roadways are still among the lowest rated in the Bay Area and MTC’s goal of having all the region’s streets and roads in a state of good repair is proving to be frustratingly hard to reach," Pedroza told the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. The report defines any road with a PCI scoring above 90 as "excellent" and those that fall into a range of 60 to 69 as "fair," which suggests looming problems and hints at more costly repairs down the road.
San José, the largest network in the Bay Area, has managed to just edge into the "good" category, with an upward tick to a 71 PCI score, while San Francisco holds steady at a mildly more comfortable 74. On the lower end, Oakland's roads stand at a worrying 57, despite a slight three-point increase in the three-year moving average.
In a narrative of incremental gains, Petaluma has notably improved by 12 points to a 55 PCI score, stepping out of the "poor" range and into the "at-risk" designation. Meanwhile, Larkspur sets a higher bar, boasting the highest one-year PCI score at 89, up four points from the previous year. The city's success, in part, can be traced back to local sales tax measures aimed directly at rehabilitating its roads. Onward to other communities, Cotati and Moraga also registered significant improvements in their PCI scores, suggesting a collective, albeit slow, forward momentum in infrastructure rejuvenation efforts.
