State of the System - Maintenance and Operations

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Maintenance and Operations

We work to keep interstates and highways open and accessible so people and freight can get where they need to go. Accordingly, we perform services such as snow and ice removal, clearing debris that can otherwise cause flooding, removing rockfall and landslide debris, and clearing lanes after traffic incidents. Part of ensuring roadways remain open also includes keeping roads, bridges, and other assets in good repair. When bridges are not maintained, for example, they cannot carry heavy trucks – forcing freight to take long detours. Preservation and maintenance functions are thus key to supporting customers – the traveling public – get where they need to go safely and efficiently.

Services by maintenance staff help keep roads open

ODOT has about 1,300 full-time employees across Oregon who perform essential services needed to maintain, monitor, and repair the transportation system. They work 7 days per week, 365 days per year in all conditions to keep roads open and travelers safe.
Each year we maintain thousands of assets like culverts, stripe and sweep thousands of miles of interstates and highway, and add deicer, salt, or sand to make roads less slippery.

Winter material use 2021-2023 – 17,500 tons of salt used. 9.3 million gallons of de-icer used. 332,500 cubic yards of abrasive used.

2021-23 biennium data for maintenance – 547,000 feet of rail and barrier maintained and replaced. 30,000 miles of long-line striping completed. 79,000 miles of lanes swept. 69,000 culverts and inlets cleaned.

2021-2023 Biennium Data

Lanes are opened quickly after a crash or other incident

Travelers experience 4 minutes of delay for every 1 minute a lane on a highway or interstate is blocked.
Most crashes that block a lane are cleared within 90 minutes.

On average, it takes one hour to get traffic moving by opening at least one lane, establishing a detour route, or providing another solution that reduced delay caused by incidents.

A column chart that shows 80% of lane blocking crashes were cleared in under 90 minutes in 2020, 79% in 2021, 78% in 2022 and 78% in 2023.

Source: ODOT Transportation Systems Operations 2023 Annual Report

Litter and graffiti issues are increasing at rates greater than we can keep up with

Litter and graffiti happen in all parts of the state and ODOT, working with local governments, addresses those issues to the best of our ability.

In 2023, Senate bill 5701 gave ODOT $20 million in general fund dollars for litter removal, graffiti cleanup, camp cleanup and access prevention in the Portland metro area for use through June 2025.
In addition, we are partnering with local business leaders to pilot a Sponsor-a-Highway program that is currently removing graffiti and litter on the I-405 corridor in Portland.

Money spent per region to clean and restore highway property during the 2021-23 budget cycle – Region 1: $9.2 million, Region 2: $5.1 million, Region 3: $3.9 million, Region 4: $2.8 million, Region 5: $1.1 million. ODOT spent $22 million to clean and restore highway property during the 2021-23 budget cycle.

To learn more about litter and graffiti clean-up efforts, please visit:

Weather extremes caused by climate change have resulted in more frequent and severe emergency events

On average, we spend an additional $18 million every 5 years on wildfires, flooding, and other extreme weather events. These large expenses come with transportation impacts like closures and delays. For example:

Between 2020 and 2023, 56 wildfire events and 212 rockfalls caused over 4,300 hours of travel delays.

With existing resources we will be challenged to keep up with more frequent and severe weather events, which will contribute to an increase in travel delays.
Since 2020, we’ve had 46 emergency events. Each event cost an estimated $8.2 million.

Few of our emergency events qualify for federal reimbursement, meaning the cost burden is placed on the state.

The condition of ODOT roads and systems are declining

At current funding levels, state highway pavement, bridges, culverts, road signs and traffic signals are deteriorating at a faster rate than we can repair and replace them. With current federal funds, we can only afford to pave interstates after 2027.

Most of the culverts we manage are near or past their 50-year design life.
Culverts are key to keeping water from damaging our roads; they are especially important as climate change makes storms more intense in the coming decades.

An image showing the need for a culvert: Water coming out of the earth under an Oregon road with erosion underneath the road.

Declining pavement conditions means more potholes and ruts on our roads. Potholes and ruts can damage vehicles and make travel less safe for all road users.

An image showing cracks and holds in an Oregon roadway

Pavement – A line chart that projects pavement conditions will fall below the 85% fair or better target in 2027 and will continue to fall at current funding levels.

Updated:04/2024

We manage over 18,000 miles of pavement, 88% of those miles are currently rated as 'fair' or better condition.
Pavement conditions began to decline in 2018.

Pavement Condition - Key Performance Measure

Bridges – A line chart that projects the percent of bridges not distressed will continue to fall below the 78% target to 74% by 2030 at current funding levels.

Updated:04/2024

We don't have enough funding to keep up with maintenance on all our bridges, so to balance that shortfall with public safety, we restrict heavy vehicles like semi trucks from using the bridges in worst shape.

About 415 of our 2,771 bridges have restrictions for heavy vehicles over certain weights.
Weight restrictions negatively impact local communities and businesses. Heavy trucks carrying goods must take long, costly detours, and heavy emergency vehicles can't get where they need to go as efficiently.

Bridge Condition - Key Performance Measure

Visit our Maintenance and Operations website to learn more

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Strategic Action Plan Progress Report

Preserve Transportation Assets

2024-2028 Strategic Actions

Annual - Continue to prepare for a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake by making bridges and other structures seismically resilient, up to and including the construction of new structures such as the Interstate Bridge

2025 - Complete a review of engineering guidance and standards focusing on increasing resiliency related to climate change and extreme events.

2026 - Identify resilience priorities based on risks and strategies identified in the Climate Adaptation and Resilience Roadmap, and other priority designations and plans to help the transportation system remain open and operational.

2026 - Update highway designations as part of the Oregon Highway Plan, to ensure investments are prioritized on critical routes that consider current and future condition needs to make the best use of constrained funding.

2024 Efforts Underway

Strategic Action Plan

Developing Timber Bridge Replacement Program to replace an aging population of bridges.
Prioritizing bridge investments that support siemic resilience while addressing other immediate bridge needs.
Updating design manuals with climate risk considerations.
Summarizing classification and designation issues to address in the Oregon Highway Plan update.