| |  Economic Stimulus Construction Project – ARRA Crestview Drive ResurfacingFrequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Why was resurfacing of Crestview Drive selected for Economic Stimulus Funding when there are streets in worse condition?
The high-volume section of Crestview Drive was selected for ARRA funding and resurfacing after reviewing reports from the City’s pavement management system and inspecting the street. The pavement on that section of Crestview is at a condition where it is beginning to deteriorate rapidly. It is much more cost-effective to resurface the street now, because in a few years it will need to be reconstructed at five times the cost.
Does the City of San Carlos fix the worst streets first?
We use a computerized pavement management program to guide decisions on using limited funds available for street maintenance. The City owns over 86 miles of streets and the replacement cost of the pavement was estimated at $129 million in 2008. A percentage of the City street system is inspected every two years and a decision tree is used to identify the most cost-effective treatment for each street.
Each year, the City prepares plans, advertises for bids, and hires a contractor to perform the pavement rehabilitation work. The computerized pavement management program guides helps the engineering staff in the Public Works Department to decide which streets should be worked on to keep the overall condition of the streets as high as possible.
It is more cost-effective to spend limited funds on streets that are about to fall apart than on streets which are already in terrible condition. This is because it costs about five times as much to reconstruct a street that has failed as it does to keep a street from falling apart. The annual budget for pavement rehabilitation averages $875,000. According to the pavement management program, if the City had the money available, the annual cost to keep the overall street network from getting worse would be $1,100,000. Once a street passes from at "At Risk" rating to a "Poor" or "Very Poor" condition, cost-effective resurfacing options are no longer available. The segments of Crestview Drive that are to be resurfaced are in the "At Risk" range.
If a street is already in terrible condition, when will it get fixed?
The answer depends on the available budget for capital projects in the Gas Tax Fund. If the City receives revenues that exceed expenses, the balance can be set aside for capital projects, including street repair. In 2008 and 2009, there was virtually no balance available. So the City was limited to only annual Gas Tax and local Measure A funds for this work. In the future, it is hoped that this trend will be reversed, more money will be available for this work and the backlog of street repairs can be addressed.
For more information, refer to the State of the Streets report posted on the Public Works web page.
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