ODOT cuts service and maintenance capacity across the board as Oregon braces for winter

LA GRANDE – Winter driving can be a very stressful experience. Ice and packed snow reduce traction and increase the likelihood of accidents on the best days while blizzards can blow shut entire stretches of road and strand hundreds of drivers on the worst days. Oregonians should prepare for things to be more challenging this winter, however, as ODOT is cutting back on services and reducing its highway maintenance schedule, including winter upkeep, in response to budget constraints.

To set the tone for these cuts, a recent fact sheet explaining the service reductions for ODOT Region 5 (which encompasses the entirety of Eastern Oregon) rather bluntly states:

“Drivers, cyclists, freight haulers, pedestrians – everyone who relies on our system – will experience a reduction in the service ODOT provides and a decline in the condition of the transportation system.”

According to ODOT Region 5 Director Ken Patterson, the service reductions are the unfortunate culmination of years of budgetary issues and internal cuts. The budget deficit, which affects the 2023-2025 biennium, is largely being attributed by ODOT to a reduction in revenue from the gas tax, which provides a significant portion of the department’s funding. Other contributing factors include rising service costs and inflation. As explained by Patterson:

“This has been an issue that’s been developing for quite a bit of time. The reliance on gas tax has been a stable source of funding for a long time. But, as you have state and federal policy and just the natural evolution of more efficient vehicles, that means there’s less gas tax being generated per vehicle than what there has been in the past. The reliance on the gas tax has served its purpose for many years, but now it needs to be updated to another method that can keep up with inflation and keep up with road maintenance and capture those vehicles that are super-efficient and don’t pay as much in road tax.”

ODOT had been making subtle, internal cuts for years prior to the announcement of the service reduction, but Patterson notes that these simply haven’t been enough:

“This didn’t catch us by surprise. We started reducing budgets in our previous two-year budget cycle by dropping our expenditures by 6%, but most of that was behind the scenes and we were able to take off the top of programs and a lot of people didn’t really see what was going on. We’re down to the point where we need to take a 15% reduction for this biennium for real cost saving, plus inflation. That, unfortunately, puts us in a position where all the easy cuts have been made and now we’re down to things that matter even more.”

Specifically, ODOT is implementing a 5% cut across all its programs and a 15% service and materials cut within the maintenance program specifically. What this all means is that state highways will see a reduction in upkeep and proactive maintenance, with smaller highways being impacted in particular. For general roadside maintenance, litter/debris clearing, graffiti removal and grass mowing/vegetation trimming will be reduced in frequency. Weed spraying and tree trimming will, notably, be reduced by 75%, with only periodic spot spraying as weeds crop up in medians and on the highway directly. As stated by Patterson:

“We’re having to narrow up our area that we would spray and just focus on the noxious weeds and trying to deal with them using spot treatment versus the broader use like we’ve had in the past. So, we’re going to see more weeds or grass growing up along the road, and we’re trying to keep them back far enough that we can preserve the pavement.

Pavement work is also going to suffer. Henceforward, any state highway with a daily traffic usage of less than 3000 vehicles (classified by ODOT as low volume roads) will have its upkeep greatly reduced and some services cut all together. As stated in the ODOT fact sheet:

“We are deferring pothole and chip seal projects, and we are not repainting edge lines…Users can expect rougher roads with more potholes and deeper ruts. During heavy rainfall, drivers should expect pooling water in the ruts. If conditions deteriorate enough, we may reduce speeds to give people more time and opportunity to navigate rough stretches of highway.”

Instead, resources will be focused on maintaining high traffic and critical freight routes. It is hoped that, by reducing resources on low traffic roads, sufficient staff and funding will be on hand to address critical issues on major highways. State highways within region 5 (Eastern Oregon) that will NOT have services and fog line painting cut include:

• I-84.
• I-82 to the Washington border.
• U.S. 20.
• U.S. 95.
• U.S. 395 from Riley to Burns.
• OR 82 from La Grande to Imbler.
• OR 11 from Pendleton to Milton Freewater.
• U.S. 730 from Boardman to the Washington border.

Unfortunately, ODOT is also implementing cutbacks to its winter maintenance schedule, with limited staff and resources once again being shifted to major highways along with known problem spots. Outside of the major arteries like I-84 and I-82, sanding and plowing services will be greatly reduced, with some state roads only scheduled to be plowed once per day, possibly even more infrequently. As once again bluntly stated in the fact sheet:

“We encourage area communities and travelers to prepare for the possibility of extended delays, closures, more chain restrictions, and varying degrees of traction as they navigate roads. With smaller budgets for staff and materials needed to plow, sand, and deice, the potential for traffic jams and crashes increases. Incidents will take longer to clear.”

Note that these scheduling and service reductions aren’t just to cut the cost of fuel and equipment upkeep, but also to compensate for general downsizing. According to Patterson, ODOT has been turning in equipment as crew sizes have been reduced, some even down to the minimum. In addition, there will be no new material purchases of rock and sanding resources, with Patterson estimating ODOT has enough in its stockpiles to last the coming biennium. 

Further, ODOT will no longer be filling staff vacancies in most departments in addition to limiting overtime hours. This also means that if positions become vacant due to staff transferring, being promoted, or quitting, they will likewise not be filled. That said, it is planned that no current staff will be laid off and that all vacant positions will be kept so that they can be easily filled in the future once funds become available again. As explained by Patterson:

“We’re also holding positions vacant. We’re not laying off or turning in positions permanently, but we’re not filling vacancies as they occur and that will help us in the short term. Then, if they’re restored, we can put crews back into place and get them back to full size.”

While the reduction in service and staff capacity is, overall, a symptom of funding issues, Patterson did explain that redistribution of remaining resources is being done in such a way as to preserve ODOT’s emergency response capacity as much as possible. While ODOT is predicting their ability to respond to incidents will still be reduced overall, the emphasis on supporting major highways and high-risk areas, in addition to holding overtime hours in reserve, will, in theory, still allow for a somewhat timely response to shutdowns and crashes. As stated by Patterson:

“Our intent is to save funding in our regular activities to be able to keep our emergency response capacity as intact as possible. However, if a crew that is used to having three people only has two on a shift, then that’s going to impact their ability to respond, and we know how important incident response is. So, what we’re trying to do is be smart about where those vacancies are going to occur.”

Emergency capacity can further be supplemented by different regional crews providing assistance during incidents, assuming they’re available. While equipment sharing by state and county work crews has also been done in the past, such as ODOT lending Union County its heavy snow blowers during the winter of 2016-17, using county and city crews to backfill state positions is not being considered.

Going forward, ODOT leadership and the state legislature are already working on a long term and sustainable solution to the funding situation. Patterson mentioned two ideas that have been discussed so far. The first is to expand tolling in the metropolitan areas to cover capital construction projects and save funds for general services. The second is to expand the OreGO program. Launched in 2015 as a volunteer pool, OreGo acts as an alternative to the gas tax where drivers pay for miles driven rather than by fuel consumed. This, in theory, will bring in revenue from more drivers and be less harsh on drivers with low efficiency vehicles. Talks are still early, however, and it remains to be seen what funding solution will be implemented.

This winter could be a harsh one for Oregon drivers, and the expected decline in road quality even beyond the cold months is daunting. Frustration and dissatisfaction in the situation are expected. Do keep in mind, however, that the flaggers, plow drivers and other staff on the ground are not the ones responsible for making the cuts and are still trying to do their jobs with the resources they have. Also keep in mind that these cuts are not exclusive to region 5 and Eastern Oregon, with all other ODOT regions facing similar reductions in service. The ODOT district offices are open to answering any questions the public may have about the service reductions and how they could impact winter driving. As best put by Patterson:

“If people have questions, they can feel free to reach out to us. We’ve got our district offices in Ontario, La Grande, and Pendleton. We’d be glad to explain what we’re doing, why we’re doing it and answer questions that folks have, but hopefully they’ll have a little bit of patience with us. Our crews do take their jobs seriously and they’re going to be working a little bit short staffed and under-resourced, but they’re going to be working as hard as they can to serve the people of Eastern Oregon.”

The region 5 service reduction fact sheet can be read in full at https://www.oregon.gov/odot/About/Documents/Service-Reductions-R5-Factsheet-2023-09.pdf

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Elkhorn Media Group

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