York County outlines five‑year plan to improve local roads, aims to raise average pavement score from 57 to 70

York County officials presented a strategic framework at the Sept. 9 county council workshop outlining how the county plans to increase road paving and preservation over the next five years, combining multiple funding sources and expanding Public Works’ in‑house capacity.

County Assistant Manager Tom Couch, who introduced the presentation, said the framework is built on four themes: “plan, fund, maintain, and deliver,” and emphasized the focus on local roads. Assistant County Engineer Patrick Hamilton described the primary funding streams — the Pennies for Progress sales‑tax program, state C funds collected from the gas tax, and a county capital maintenance account (Fund 14‑22) — and said staff will combine those sources when bidding projects to improve unit pricing.

Why it matters: staff told the council nearly a third of county roads are rated in poor condition and the county’s overall pavement condition slipped from an average score of 59 in 2022 to 57 earlier this year. Management set a target to raise the countywide average to about 70 within five years to reduce long‑term repair costs and slow the shift of “fair” roads into “poor.”

Funding and targets Patrick Hamilton said Pennies for Progress (the…