The Hidden Life of County Roads

The Origins of Washington State's Unsung Heroes and Their Keepers

Investing in infrastructure is widely accepted as essential in any well-functioning society.

It creates jobs, improves safety and boosts our economy in a number of direct and indirect ways. Which is why, even in today’s contentious times, we have been able to come together to pass legislation like the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and Move Ahead Washington.

When thinking of infrastructure spending, it is often the new, flashy, large-scale projects entailing ribbon-cutting ceremonies that garner the attention (and headlines). However, it’s the ongoing maintenance and updates to existing infrastructure, while more humble and less photogenic, that can provide the biggest return on investment.

From small seaside communities and snowy mountain backroads to sprawling prairies, there are more than 167,000 lane miles of road in Washington State.

Roads are so ubiquitous that they are easy to take for granted.

Image of a curving road.
Image of a curving road.

In fact, in 1965 the legislative leadership of Washington State came up with an innovative solution to answer questions just like these about our roads.

But first, let’s go back and start with some historical context…

To really understand the story of county roads – and what it takes to care for them – it is helpful to look at their history. After Congress split the growing Oregon Territory and established what would eventually become Washington State, the newly formed Legislature faced a unique set of geographical, technological, organizational and financial challenges for rudimentary roads built by local residents and mule teams.

Scroll the interactive timeline below to learn more about some of the historical events in Washington that have influenced the governance of our roads today. Pay particular attention to the tension and growth as the counties and the state’s partnership developed.

112 years after that first Territorial Legislature convened, a new group of state leaders were facing many of the same challenges, but for roads with dramatically different needs:

The population had grown from less than 4,000 settlers to 3 million residents with 1.5 million registered vehicles on the road.

The needs for and uses of roads had changed significantly but inadequate, outdated practices were still being used for planning, programing and administration on local levels.

Annual expenditures for roads and streets in the state were approaching $100 million, and yet an investigation revealed that “insufficient funds were being used ineffectively.”

Existing legal requirements and statutes were not being enforced and county road conditions and safety were not subject to the new federal standards that the state roads were.

Several studies were conducted to explore and assess the issue between 1948 and 1962, culminating in the Legislation for Better Road and Street Administration report.

Their conclusion: Washington's leaders couldn't solve the problem with their existing toolbox. They needed to do something new. Something unprecedented.

The report recommended the creation of a County Road Administration Board (CRAB) to fill the gap and address these critical, but complex, issues for county roads. The proposal was broadly supported by county engineers and the Washington State Association of County Commissioners and the agency was established in 1965 ( RCW 36.78 ).

Click on the tiles below to expand and learn more about what the County Road Administration (CRAB) looks like in the 21 st  century.

Image of State of Washington.
Image of state lane miles.
Image of city lane miles.

So where does the County Road Administration Board fit in all of this to take care of our roads?

Well, let’s go back to those questions we asked earlier…

Scroll through the slides below to see how CRAB has the answers to the questions you may have about our county roads.

"Do you remember the design of the road?"
"When was the last time that road was repaired or refurbished?"
"Who was responsible for assessing the road and doing so?"

"What was the environmental impact of that road?"

As we work to balance the growth and prosperity of this great state, the stewardship of our environment is paramount. And, it is an area we are proactively working on.

To address environmental and health disparities, the Board is incorporating the Healthy Environment for All (HEAL) Act into our strategic plan and has joined several Department of Health workshops as a “listen and learn” agency.

Currently, our efforts are focused on the adoption of a community engagement plan and a tribal consultation framework as well as utilizing our information technology to develop dashboards that can aid decisionmakers in these areas.

"Were the funds for the road stewarded responsibly?"

If it is a county road, CRAB has the numbers for you to decide for yourself.

Thanks to our comprehensive reporting system, we are able to trace exactly where funding goes and how it is used. For example, when Move Ahead Washington was passed, CRAB was able to quickly turn around needed funds to counties within 30 days of receipt and provide state leadership with a full report of every penny spent within 9 months.

On our part, CRAB is operated by a small and agile team of 16 employees efficiently administering $100 million per biennium with a low overhead that is consistently under 3%. Because of our small size, county staff know they can pick up the phone with a question and quickly reach a knowledgeable staff member to help.

As for our grant program funding, selected projects are thoroughly peer-reviewed and vetted to ensure funds are stewarded appropriately.

But enough about us. Let's take a look at some of those unsung heroes in our state.

The County Road Administration Board’s Rural Arterial Program (RAP) has successfully funded over $650 million in improvements to county roads in its nearly 40 years of existence.

Each biennium, CRAB carefully vets and funds between 140 and 170 road construction, repair and maintenance projects. The $40 million per biennium program has been extremely popular, with at least triple the demand of available resources.

Scroll through the interactive map below to explore a few recent county road projects supported through the RAP Program.

Today, county roads like these are facing a complex set of challenges.

The caretakers of our county roads are doing a commendable job stretching dollars to maximize the investment the people of Washington State have made into them, but they are at a critical juncture.

A recent study estimated that the costs of deferred maintenance for Washington’s county roads is sitting at $4.7 to 6.3 billion – over 5 times the annual transportation budget for county roads.

The cost of maintaining roads has been on the rise for decades.

Historic population growth has resulted in more vehicles traveling on county roads each day, 8.2 million registered vehicles to be exact. And more vehicles mean more pressure on county roads, and more maintenance to keep those roads safe.

Let’s take a look at road resurfacing as an example.

Resurfacing is a cost-effective way to prolong the life of roads and improve safety by grinding down the aging top layer of road surface and laying down a new layer.  

Image of miles resurfaced from 1990 to 2019.

Back in 1990, counties could resurface about 64 miles of road for $1 million.

10 years later and $1 million could resurface about 47 miles of road.

By 2010 the amount of resurfacing that could be done for $1 million dropped all the way down to 28 miles.

And as of 2019, it's down to a mere 21 miles.

That is less than a third of the mileage that could be resurfaced for the same amount in 1990.

That’s just one example.

The Producer Price Index (PPI), a key metric the federal government uses to track the price of certain goods, confirms that the costs for gravel and other roadway construction materials has skyrocketed, particularly in the past two years, spreading existing budgets even more thinly.

Click the graph to interact with the PPI data.

This trend of rising material and labor costs shows no signs of slowing down.

However, despite increasing demands and increasing costs, the funding for caring for county roads has remained stagnant.

The Washington Association of Counties'  Transportation Revenue Study , explores the funding gap at length, noting that the total state funding contributions to county roads have declined from 36% in 1998 to just 23% as of 2018.

Enacted in 1921, the Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax (MVFT) is the primary funding source for Washington’s road construction and upkeep. The formula for the distribution of fuel tax revenues is updated biennially to reflect statewide changes in population, costs, and mileage.

Counties are responsible for maintaining the majority of Washington State public roads; however, counties have received very little increase to their share of the MVFT.

Since 1999, the MVFT has increased 115% but the county share has only increased by 11%.

A disproportionate share of the MVFT is the biggest contributing factor to the $1.23 billion transportation funding gap that counties are facing EACH YEAR to maintain our roads.

So, who can help?

The County Road Administration Board serves as a vital liaison between the state decision makers and county builders and is uniquely positioned to offer valuable insights and ideas on how to best take care of our county roads.

"Changes in the times require that we not only catch up on the delinquencies of the past but keep up with the needs of the present.” - G.A. Riedesel, P.E. (1964)

Specifically, for the 2023 Legislative Session, the Board has identified key areas of consideration for addressing present needs, supporting proven, in-progress initiatives and practical ways of identifying forward-thinking solutions for the future.

Recommended Areas for Investment

Click through the slides below to learn more about ways to support our county roads.

1. Invest in the PRESERVATION AND MAINTENANCE of our roads.

We strongly recommend fully funding the County Road Administration Board’s capital program so funds can continue to be quickly and effectively deployed for needed road projects, including:

$52 million for the Rural Arterial Program

$39 million for the County Arterial Preservation Program

$2.5 million for the Emergency Loan Program

As was done in the previous biennium, we request a Motor Vehicle Account Transfer be included in the 2023-2025 budget, representing an additional $7.27 million toward county maintenance needs.

1. Invest in the PRESERVATION AND MAINTENANCE of our roads.

2. Invest in EFFICIENT OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY for our roads.

We recommend supporting our professional and technical services’ continued national leadership in trusted, effective visionary transportation administration by funding:

$250,000 to commission a study to determine how existing grant programs can be most responsive to county needs, where the gaps are and whether new programs may be warranted. Potential areas for review include local access roads, fish barrier removal, multi-modal transportation and environmental justice.

$480,000 for necessary legacy software replacements and upgrades so the agency can continue to operate critical, award-winning programs such as GIS-MO, CARS and RAP Online.

3. Invest in INNOVATIVE FUNDING solutions for our roads.

CRAB’s highly skilled workforce is uniquely positioned to assist Washington communities in navigating and pursuing federal programs and dollars that wouldn’t otherwise be accessible. We recommend:

Funding additional FTEs dedicated to supporting counties as they obtain essential federal funding for their county road projects.

If you are interested in taking a deeper dive into the county roads in your neck of the woods, explore our interactive dashboard below.

Zoom in on your legislative district or county and click on a project to take a look at the details of an active Rural Arterial Program (RAP) project. Use the legend on the left for additional information.

WA CRAB's Rural Arterial Program (RAP)

Or learn more about the County Road Administration Board on our website.

And, simply enjoy your next drive on a county road.

Photograph of county road in Eastern Washington on a sunny day with rolling hills