By Craig S. Harrison, President, Save Our Sonoma Roads

When a road fails, inadequate drainage is often the cause. Surface water can weaken the pavement, causing cracks to expand and encourages the formation of potholes. Water below the asphalt pavement can saturate and weaken the supporting materials in the aggregate base and subgrade; traffic can then cause excess damage to the pavement.

Sonoma County Public Infrastructure has a dedicated crew that is tasked with cleaning both drainage ditches (open channels for water) along the sides of county roads as well as culverts (drain pipes located underground) that run under them.  Eventually ditches and culverts clog with debris so that water spills onto roads during downpours. This decreases the life of the road surface and causes premature potholes.

County staff are not always aware of specific clogged culverts or problem drainage ditches. You can help ensure proper drainage and prolong the life of the roads you use by reporting problems on the county’s app for smart phones called SoCo Connect. The SoCo Connect app is available in the Apple and Google Play stores. You may also call the road maintenance division of Sonoma County Public Infrastructure at 707-565-5100.

The county considers plugged culverts under private driveways that adjoin public roads to be the owners’ responsibility. The county will not clean them out. If your culvert gets clogged, you need to arrange to fix it yourself.  We know of a company that will clean out culverts under a driveway, although we have no experience with it:  Miksis Services Inc.