Santa Cruz County maintains approximately 317.67 miles of unpaved roads and streets. One of the most important recurring functions of the Road Division of the Public Works Department is to grade these roads. As part of our regular maintenance program, the Road Division crews blade and smooth most public dirt roads. Some roads with diminished traffic and located in remote areas are not maintained as frequently. During the rainy season, these roads may get rutted and rough. potentially hazardous situations should be reported to the Road Division.

Santa Cruz County also maintain approximately 412.322 miles of hard surface county roads and streets. Maintenance requirements for this roadway system include overlays, and chip seal. Another aspect of routine maintenance by the Road Division is the repair of potholes. Crews inspect the roads on a regular basis and patch holes in the road surface as they occur. When you see a pothole, a call to the Road Division will assure that a service request is written and the pothole will be repaired as soon as possible.

Santa Cruz County is governed by State Statutes as to how public funds are spend on roadways. Arizona Revised Statutes § 28-6705 identifies how public funds may be spent on roads other than established County Highways. Following is the text of that Statute: 28-6705 Public Road and Street Maintenance a. The Board of supervisors may spend public monies for maintenance of public roads and streets other than legally designated state and county highways located without the limits of an incorporated city or town. Before spending public monies under this section, the road or streets shall be both: 1. Laid out, opened and constructed without cost to the County. 2. Completed pursuant to a plat approved pursuant to sections 11-802 and 11-806 and in accordance with standard engineering road specifications adopted by the board of supervisors to ensure uniform compliance. b. The board of supervisors may spend public monies for maintenance of public roads and streets laid out, constructed and opened before June 13, 1975 even if the roads and streets were not constructed in accordance with subsection A of this section c. Maintenance of a public road or street does not include purchasing or laying cement. To reduce long-term maintenance costs for maintenance authorized by this section, the board of supervisors may spend monies to add rock products, gravel and processed materials to the base of the roads and streets. Petroleum based or nonpetroleum based products may be used in the maintenance and repair of unpaved roads, alleys and shoulders identified pursuant to section 9-500.04 or section 49-474.01 · Methods: The two most commonly utilized methods of paving unpaved roadway are by a County improvement district or Public/Private Partnership with the County's Road Division. Possible advantages and disadvantages of each method are as follows:

a) County Improvement District A minimum of 51% of the residents petition for improvements. Everyone within the district boundaries pays for their fair share and have up to ten years to pay their assessments. This is more costly than public/private partnership and will take longer.

b) Public/Private Partnership Residents agree to provide the material and other costs prior to construction. The project is then constructed by the Road Division. The contractor and the road Division may share in the project costs. Public/Private Partnership projects are generally lower in cost than improvement districts. However they must be paid for in advance and are not assessed over a ten-year period. Any financing must be done by the individual (s). There are additional costs to the paying residents if some individuals do not wish to participate in the Public/Private Partnership Project.

If you should see a traffic sign down or damaged, it should be reported to the Santa Cruz County Public Works Department at (520) 375-7830, during regular hours to assure prompt repair and/or replacement. After 5:00 p.m., please call Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office at (520) 761-7869, to report a traffic sign problem. A Tree Branch Is Obstructing My View At An Intersection.

The Road Division trims vegetation that grow within the public right of way (adjacent to roadways) to minimize the potential for any vegetation from blocking or interfering with drivers' ability to see the roadways clearly. If you see an area where the trees or brush block your ability to see the road way and on-coming traffic, please call the Public Works Department at (520) 375-7830, and we will schedule the trees or brush for trimming. Brush growing along right of way that may obstruct vision from a private driveway is the responsibility of the property owner (or driveway owner).

The Road Division does NOT maintain lanes or alleyways with the exception of keeping lanes or alleys accessible for traffic and fire and emergency vehicles and removing health hazards, the Division does not perform alley or lane maintenance. Alley maintenance is the responsibility of the private homeowner, property agent (for rental property), or business owner.

Our Road Division DOES NOT maintain or clean out driveway culverts. This is the sole responsibility of the property owner. Culverts and cattleguards under roadways are the maintenance responsibility of the Road Division.

As provided for Ordinances, a permit must be obtained before work can be done in the right of way. This includes public utilities, contractors and individuals, for purposes other than transportation (e.g. trenching or cutting) in the right of way. Applications for a road cut permit can be obtained in the Public Works Department Office. There is an inspection fee charged to each applicant to assure that the use of the county property is in compliance with permit ordinance.

The Road Division of the Santa Cruz County Public Works Department functions by maintaining, for your benefit, the roadways in Santa Cruz County in the most efficient manner possible.

Citizens can assist us by reporting potentially hazardous road and drainage conditions to the Road Division of the Public Works Department, and by noting the exact location of the problem (road/street and cross street). The phone number of the Road Division is: (520) 375-7830 for the County complex, during regular business hours. Emergencies occurring during non-business hours and on weekends should be reported to the Sheriff's Department (520) 761-7869. The County can then take appropriate action.

The Road Division of the County's Public Works Department, receives its funding from the Arizona Highways user (gasoline) Revenue Fund (HURF), not sales taxes or local property taxes. These highway user revenues currently amount to approximately $124.00 per resident in the unincorporated area of Santa Cruz County. The following telephone number can be utilized in outlying areas to reach the Transportation Division offices outside Nogales: TUBAC (520) 398-0179; SONOITA (520) 455- 5346 or (520) 761-7889.