FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WHAT ROADS DOES THE COUNTY MAINTAIN?

DPW uses state gas tax revenues to fund road improvements and maintenance.  Gas tax revenues can only be used on roads or infrastructure that are part of the County-maintained road system (CMRS).  DPW is prohibited by law from expending public funds for the repair or maintenance of roads which are not part of the CMRS.  The ownership and maintenance of these roads remains with the adjacent private property owners.  DPW has an interactive map available here which allows users to identify roads which have been accepted into the CMRS. 

WHY IS MY ROAD NOT MAINTAINED BY THE COUNTY?

DPW uses state gas tax revenues to fund road improvements and maintenance.  Gas tax revenues can only be used on roads or infrastructure that are part of the County-maintained road system (CMRS).  Not all roads are maintained by the County.  When property is developed, roads are reviewed to determine if they should be added to the CMRS on the regulations applicable at the time.  If a road is not in the CMRS it is likely due to the fact that it was previously determined that the road did not need to be improved to County standards and brought into our maintenance system at the time.  DPW is prohibited by law from expending public funds for the repair or maintenance of roads which are not part of the CMRS.  The ownership and maintenance of these roads remains with the adjacent private property owners.

MY ROAD IS NOT IN THE MAINTAINED SYSTEM.  HOW CAN I GET THE COUNTY TO MAINTAIN IT?

There are two options for the public maintenance of private roads. The first option is to create a Permanent Road Division Zone (PRD) through DPW’s Private Road & Landscape Maintenance Section. A PRD is a special district which provides property owners a mechanism to pay for private road maintenance in a geographically defined area.   The County of San Diego’s Permanent Road Division Zone program provides maintenance services to 67 PRDs that have approximately 94 private road centerline miles throughout the unincorporated areas of San Diego County.  Road maintenance services are paid by the property owners through special benefit assessments/taxes that are placed on the tax rolls, which are approved by affected voters.   The boundaries of the PRD Zone generally include properties fronting on or using the road(s). To form a PRD there is a one-time cost of approximately $25,000-$30,000, annual administration costs of approximately $3,000-$4,000 by year that is borne by the property owners that use the PRD road, and the cost to perform maintenance on the road.   For more information on DPWs PRD Program you can visit the Program website by selecting the link here. The PRD FAQs (here) provide additional details of the Program as well.   If you have any questions or require additional information, please feel free to contact the Private Road & Landscape Maintenance team at SPDIST.LUEG@SDCounty.ca.gov or by calling 858-694-2691.

The second option is to accept the private segments into the County’s maintained road system.   The road must be improved, using other than County funding, usually private funding, to current Public Road Standards through the County’s Land Development Permit Process. This would require development of an engineered plan that would be submitted to the County’s Planning & Development Services (PDS) Land Development Division for review.  Once approved, the plan would be used for construction of the road improvements. This option would allow the road to be brought into the County’s maintained road system.     

I HAVE ROAD SAFETY CONCERNS ALONG A COUNTY ROAD.

For concerns related to road safety, such as excessive speeding, unreasonable driver behavior, vehicle loitering, etc., the most effective means to address, in the public right-of-way, the most effective means to address these concerns has been proven to be through law enforcement by the California Highway Patrol (CHP).  You may contact the CHP’s Illegal Parking in Unincorporated Areas department at 680-trafficcomplaint@chp.ca.gov or by calling 858-637-3800.

CAN THE COUNTY FIX MY DRIVEWAY OR WALKING PATH?

The Zoning Ordinance and  County Parking Design Manual states that "... the construction, repair, and maintenance of all driveways, curbs and gutters, and sidewalks are the responsibility of the property owner, developer, or tenant."  DPW uses state gas tax revenues to fund road improvements and maintenance.  Gas tax revenues can only be used on roads or infrastructure that are part of the County-maintained road system (CMRS).