Transportation Maintenance

A well-maintained transportation system ensures the safe and efficient movement of people, goods and services and is essential to the city's economic vitality and environmental sustainability.

The City of Boulder routinely performs street and bike path sweeping. Street sweeping services include sweeping and cleaning streets and gutters to remove dirt, debris, and hazards to increase safety, improve drainage, and reduce dust and air pollution. Most of the work is accomplished using mechanical sweepers and hand cleaning is performed at inaccessible locations.

The city only performs street sweeping on roads maintained by the city. For street sweeping requests on Boulder County roads, please contact the county directly at 303-441-3962.

• Residential Street Sweeping Program Map

The City of Boulder’s Pavement Management Program includes inspecting and rating all streets on a three-year interval to maintain awareness of existing conditions and guide where pavement repairs will be made in future years.

Broken or damaged sidewalks are an eyesore, inconvenience, and safety hazard. Private property owners are responsible for maintaining the sidewalk(s) adjacent to their property. The City of Boulder has two sidewalk repair programs to help keep Boulder walkable. Licensed and insured contractors complete the repairs at competitive rates. The city may share the cost of sidewalk repairs in the right-of-way when:

• any vertical displacement exceeds 3/4 inch;
• there is a crack more than one inch wide;
• the surface has deteriorated, cracked or settled;
• the sidewalk does not allow for adequate drainage; and/or
• the sidewalk is a safety hazard.

Please provide the address or location of the sidewalk and any photos that will help us identify the specific area for repair.

According to the City of Boulder Revised Code 8-2-6, the property owner adjacent to the sidewalk is responsible for keeping their sidewalk in good repair and a safe, unobstructed condition.

For requested repairs, city staff will assess the request and contact the adjacent property owner to notify them of the issue and seek an agreement to share in the cost of repairs.

If practical, temporary measures may be taken to improve the current conditions while the property owners are being contacted and an agreement is sought to complete permanent repairs. These temporary measures could include patching and/or painting to make the hazard more visible. If feasible, the sidewalk may be ground down to eliminate the hazard.

Annual Sidewalk Repair Program

Each year, the Annual Sidewalk Repair Program targets a specific area in Boulder to repair sidewalks and install pedestrian curb access ramps. The city covers the cost of the pedestrian curb access ramp improvement and shares the cost of the sidewalk repairs with the adjacent property owners.

See a map of the prioritized areas for the Annual Sidewalk Repair Program here.

Public-Private Cost-Sharing for Sidewalk Repairs within the Annual Sidewalk Repair Program

• Owners pay for up to half of the repair costs for sidewalks adjacent to their property.
• For single-family residential properties in an area being repaired, the property owner will not be assessed more than $450 per property per year, no matter the total cost of a standard concrete sidewalk repair. Property owners are responsible for additional costs associated with flagstone sidewalk repairs.
• Repairs can be paid for in monthly installments, with interest over a two-year period.
• If a property owner chooses to have repairs done by their own city-licensed contractor, the city can reimburse property owners for up to 50 percent of the cost of having the city's contractor make the repairs.
• If pedestrian access ramps are missing from street corners or do not meet current standards, the city will install or upgrade the ramps at no cost when other repairs are being made.
• If there are any repairs to existing irrigation systems or restorations of major sections of landscaping impacted by curb ramp work, the city will complete this work.

Miscellaneous Sidewalk Repair Program

The Miscellaneous Sidewalk Repair Program can share in sidewalk repairs anywhere in the city -- including within an area prioritized by the Annual Sidewalk Repair Program if the sidewalk is in need of immediate attention for accessibility or the safety of the travelling public.

• Property owners pay for half of the repair costs for sidewalks adjacent to their property.
• Property owners are responsible for the additional costs associated with flagstone sidewalk repairs.
• If a property owner chooses to have repairs done by their own city-licensed contractor, the city can reimburse property owners for up to 50 percent of the cost of having the city's contractor make the repairs.
• The $450 maximum charge for single-family homeowners does not apply to the Miscellaneous Sidewalk Repair Program.

Accessibility for People with Disabilities

• To share an accessibility concern with staff, please complete an Inquire Boulder ticket.

Missing Sidewalk Links Program

Missing Sidewalk Links identities, prioritizes, and constructs missing sidewalk segments to provide a continuous pedestrian network and ensure a safe walking environment.

Adjacent Property Owners' Duty to Maintain Sidewalks

The Boulder Revised Code requires property owners to:

• keep sidewalks clear of snow;
• prevent all vegetation from overgrowing onto or above sidewalks; and
• prevent tree limbs from obstructing sidewalks by making sure they are at least eight feet above sidewalks.

Property owners are responsible for removing, trimming, or cutting trees, bushes, and shrubs on their property that overhang sidewalks, streets and paths creating a public safety hazard or obstruction. Maintain landscape so that there are eight feet of overhead clearance above and eighteen inches of side clearance from any sidewalk, and path and so not to obstruct any traffic device or signs at all times of the year.

Branch piles left on the property or in the road are considered a violation of the city's trash ordinance.

For more information, please see Boulder Municipal Code on the subject of Public Right of Way and Public Easement Encroachments Prohibited 8-6-3.

What if my neighbors' trees have branches that are growing over my property line?

This is a civil issue that should be taken up with your neighbors. If the issue cannot be resolved personally, the city's Housing and Human Services Department offers a Mediation Program to assist with resolving disputes. Call 303-441-4364 for assistance with mediation services.

The City of Boulder Transportation & Mobility Maintenance Department maintains alleys on an "as needed" basis. Alleys, typically constructed of a sand/stone material mixture called road base, are assessed annually and priorities are set for maintenance activities. These activities may include potholing, reconstruction or grading, with the majority of alleys getting graded on an annual basis.

I received your mailer.  When will my alley be graded within the window you provided? 

We give the window to try and help narrow down when we will be in your area. However, we currently cannot provide a specific scheduled date for this work. We utilize the same crews and equipment for many different street maintenance functions, many of which are deemed higher priorities. Our schedule can vary as a result of weather events, emergency work, and other priorities that divert us from scheduled alley maintenance. With 628 lane miles of paved streets, alleys amount to about 4% of the transportation network, and higher-use facilities often must be prioritized first. The window is the best estimate we have.

I did not receive a mailer, but my neighbor did.  Will my alley also be maintained?

It's possible we may still be coming to your alley. We plan our work as efficiently as possible by addressing alleys with the same types of treatments and in the same areas as much as possible. All alleys are broken into schedule windows to help us give better timeframe estimates for when we will be in your area. Different surface types are maintained differently and require different materials. If you live next to a dirt alley, it will be graded or inspected during the window provided on the mailer. If you live next to a private alley or you, or a neighbor, have privately installed rock in the alley, the city does not maintain it. Paved alleys are maintained as necessary by request. Therefore, depending on the needs for differing alleys and ownership of maintenance responsibilities, we may not be servicing nearby alleys at the same time.

What actions does your team take to maintain the alleys?  (i.e. grading, pothole filling, adding material, reducing dust, etc.)

Dirt alleys that are owned and maintained by the city are inspected one to two times per year. If necessary, crews will perform grading and compacting operations. Paved alleys that have potholes are patched as requested.

How will I know if you have already inspected my alley and/or done work?

If your alley was inspected but was not identified as needing maintenance, there will be a pink "X" on the alley apron (concrete entrance in the ROW) on either end of the alley. If maintenance was performed, you will notice the soil has been disturbed and any vegetation down the center is removed. The vegetation is generally removed as a byproduct of grading and not necessarily targeted.

What should I do about my trash cans if I have alley pickup?

Trash cans should not be in the path of travel in an alley at any time. Please keep them as close to your house as possible. We will do our best to move cans that are left out in the alley, understanding that sometimes it is the trash pickup company that leaves trash cans in the alley.

What if I have plantings/flower beds adjacent to the alley?  Will you disturb/replace them?

We only do work within the City's right of way. If you have vegetation that you have planted in the right of way, it should not be there. However, there are rare occasions when the unpredictable happens to private property. If there is damage to private property, please contact our Risk Management Team at riskmanagement@bouldercolorado.gov.

Will I be able to access the alley that day with my vehicle or do I need to park on the street?

When equipment is in the alley, cars should be parked on the street so city crews can more efficiently finish their work. Traffic impacts are minimal and city staff will make efforts to ensure access is maintained.

What if I am not satisfied with the maintenance performed in my alley?

The alley was maintained to industry standards and to cover city responsibilities for the alley. Dirt alleys, paved alleys, and streets are not serviced in the same way. This is due to the maintenance types and needs of different surface types and service levels provided for different levels of use. Unpaved alleys will generally be the lowest service level street in areas where they exist due to the low overall volume of use. There is sometimes confusion about what services the city can provide in alleys. The city cannot afford to provide customized services in alleys and must treat each neighborhood equitably. Due to other considerations with alleys and city budget reductions, we are not considering upgrades to alley surface types.

What can be done if my alley was recently maintained but has quickly deteriorated again?

You can always submit an Inquire Boulder ticket about the damage. Please include pictures so we can prioritize it with the rest of our work. Good photos can sometimes save us an inspection trip. Please remember that unpaved alleys will respond to weather events differently than paved surfaces.

I live at (insert address).  Will you fix my alley?

Eventually, yes. We have a program that breaks the alleys into zones. We ensure every alley gets inspected one to two times per year and determine the maintenance needs. If we reactively bounced around the city, our efficiencies would be negatively impacted, and we would not be able to perform as many services. In addition, we stick to our zones and programmed timeframes in order to ensure each alley and neighborhood get equitable treatments.

The city's Public Works Department performs routine maintenance for more than 600 hard surface and landscaped surface medians. Regular maintenance activities include weed control, landscaping, tree pruning, mowing, trash removal, and irrigation management.

The city also has an Adopt-a-Median Program where certain medians are eligible for adoption by Boulder residents and organizations. Adopting organizations and residents will be provided with trash bags and safety vests. A safety meeting for program participants will also be provided prior to the first median cleaning.

An adopting resident or organization will be asked to:

• remove weeds, trash and debris; and
• prune and perform other basic landscape management tasks on a regular basis during the growing season and on a monthly basis during the non-growing season.

Transportation Maintenance staff will mow the area, repair irrigation systems, and replace trees and shrubs. If you should encounter maintenance crews that are performing these tasks, please be courteous and follow the traffic control in place if applicable.

Traffic Signal Information

Safe operation of the city’s modern traffic system is an important part of engineering efficient travel for all transportation options. The city identifies the appropriate signal timing for each intersection based on many factors, such as:

• Traffic levels at different times of day

• Speed limits

• The number of travel and turn lanes

• Street classification

• Crash data

The city takes travel safety seriously. To provide feedback on traffic signal timing or locations, visit Inquire Boulder.