North Bay Q&A: These are the top 3 worst roads in Santa Rosa, readers say

Readers pointed to major arterial roads to less trafficked neighborhood streets as being some of the worst roads in their commute.|
PAULINA PINEDA
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

North Bay Q&A

After The Press Democrat reported a story that raised questions about Santa Rosa's ability to pay for upgrades to its deteriorating roads, we asked our readers which streets were the worst. Another reader sent in a question about how the city decides which roads to repair. This story looks at both of those inquiries.

Whether you're a longtime resident or a recent transplant, there's probably something you've wondered about this place we call home.

Have something on your mind? A topic you want us to explore? Visit pressdemocrat.com/north-bay-qa/ to pose your question.

Mark Bowden curses as he makes his daily commute east on Bellevue Avenue from his southwest Santa Rosa home to the warehouse where he operates his organic tea business, Tea and Trumpets.

The drive isn’t too bad from Stony Point Road to Elsie Allen High School. But past the school, patches of uneven pavement and alligator cracking cause the suspension on his new Honda Civic to rattle.

“It’s so bumpy it feels like I’m on the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland,” he said.

Bowden is one of about 100 readers who responded to a question from The Press Democrat last month: Which streets in Santa Rosa are the worst?

Comments poured in, as Santa Rosans complained about major arterials to less trafficked neighborhood streets across the city.

Chris Sevilla, who lives in the neighborhood adjacent to Santa Rosa Memorial Park, said he worries his young children will fall off their bikes as they ride on the cracked pavement in the court leading to his home.

Claremont Drive between Franquette and Yulupa avenues is so bad Jim Drain joked “it’s like a motocross course.”

One reader said it would be easier to ask which roads are in good condition.

“That list would be much shorter,” Lynne Anne Polomo wrote.

Santa Rosa’s 512-mile road network is by far not the worst in Sonoma County — though some people who responded say otherwise.

The city’s network has a score of 62 on the Pavement Condition Index, a scale of zero to 100 used to measure pavement health, with zero being a gravel road and 100 being a newly paved street.

A 2020 report from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, the transportation planning and financing agency for the Bay Area, puts Santa Rosa in the middle of the pack among the region’s 101 cities. In Sonoma County, Windsor had the best rating at 76 while Petaluma ranked the worst and was second from the bottom across the entire nine-county region at 42.

But city transportation officials warn the road system is at risk of failing if Santa Rosa doesn’t increase its investment in pavement maintenance and preservation.

Santa Rosa spends $11 million annually on maintenance, but staff said funding must be bumped up to $15.5 million a year, plus adjustments for inflation, to maintain the current road conditions and prevent further deterioration.

Maintenance work is paid through gas taxes, grants and a quarter-cent countywide transportation sales tax. An infusion of general fund dollars could help meet the gap.

That’s unlikely to happen this fiscal year as city administrators ask department heads to hold the line on spending.

Long-term, improving pavement quality likely would require a new tax, a larger share of state and federal funds or a bond, Assistant City Manager Jason Nutt told the council during a May 10 budget hearing.

How does the city determine which roads to fix?

Santa Rosa transportation officials field daily calls and emails from residents complaining about road conditions and asking when their street is going to get a makeover.

But how does the city decide which roads to repair?

Workers will make emergency repairs to potholes and other damage brought to the city’s attention, said Rob Sprinkle, deputy director of traffic engineering.

But pavement maintenance, repaving and reconstruction are typically included in the city’s Capital Improvement Program, a long-range financial plan for the maintenance of city infrastructure that includes work beyond street repairs.

Long-term fixes include slurry seals, a thin coating placed on roads that are still in decent condition to prevent water from getting into cracks and worsening. The coating typically lasts up to eight years.

Sprinkle said city workers check the condition of the city’s 512-mile road network to determine if streets fall in one of four categories on the Pavement Condition Index: good, at risk, poor and failed.

Major arterials are inspected every two years and residential streets every four years.

Arterials are prioritized because they have higher volumes of traffic, including larger vehicles that cause more wear to the asphalt.

The city typically replaces or repaves neighborhood streets when water or sewer lines are being replaced. Street engineers work with Santa Rosa Water to time road work with utility work, Sprinkle said.

— Press Democrat Staff Writer Colin Atagi

Here’s a look at what readers ranked as the top three worst roads in Santa Rosa.

Montgomery Drive

About a dozen readers said Montgomery Drive, an east-west corridor in west Santa Rosa, is in serious disrepair, particularly the area between Third Street and Mission Boulevard.

Philip Snodgrass said after underground utility work was completed years ago, crews patched over the dug-out street. But the asphalt over the trenches has since deteriorated, causing cracks to widen into potholes “that do a number on tires and wheels.”

Another reader, Tim Tewksbury, said he has to dodge the potholes and cracks while riding his bicycle on Montgomery Drive, which is a challenge.

Fulton and Piner roads intersection

The intersection at Fulton and Piner roads in northwest Santa Rosa was frequently mentioned as worst single crossroads by readers.

Several respondents noted that while a section of Fulton Road was recently repaved, work is needed at the intersection and more broadly on other stretches of both roads.

Nancy Lindell, who lives in northwest Santa Rosa, noted Fulton Road is a major artery connecting Highway 12 to the airport and is in bad shape. The area feels forgotten, she said.

On Piner Road, a section from Marlow Road to Range Avenue is especially bad, Pete Stefanisko said.

“When they resurfaced that section, they left all the bumps in!” he said. “They keep building on this side of the freeway, so the roads have more cars, which adds to the poor roads.”

Calistoga Road

Calistoga Road is a major thoroughfare to schools and businesses and neighboring counties but, Tom Sather said, it “has been chewed up by construction so many times that it feels like a dirt road.”

Sather was one of about 10 readers who said Calistoga from Highway 12 north to the city limits was damaged and not properly maintained.

Tom Mulford said the city has taken a band-aid approach to fixing the road, which has created uneven pavement.

“It’s a mishmash of terrible spot repairs that challenges your car’s suspension system,” he said.

You can reach Staff Writer Paulina Pineda at 707-521-5268 or paulina.pineda@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @paulinapineda22.

North Bay Q&A

After The Press Democrat reported a story that raised questions about Santa Rosa's ability to pay for upgrades to its deteriorating roads, we asked our readers which streets were the worst. Another reader sent in a question about how the city decides which roads to repair. This story looks at both of those inquiries.

Whether you're a longtime resident or a recent transplant, there's probably something you've wondered about this place we call home.

Have something on your mind? A topic you want us to explore? Visit pressdemocrat.com/north-bay-qa/ to pose your question.

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