New pavement report gives Tyler clearer roadmap for street work

Every street tells a different story of the path residents and businesses take within the City of Tyler. A recent citywide pavement assessment has given the City a clearer picture to help decide which streets need improvements and an outline of which to work on first. 

On Wednesday, Sept. 9., the Tyler City Council heard a presentation on the Pavement Condition Index (PCI). The report gave Tyler’s overall street system a score of 76.2, which falls within the "Satisfactory" range. 

To gather the data, engineering firm Applied Research Associates (ARA) drove every city-maintained street in specialized vehicles equipped with sensors and cameras to evaluate surface wear, cracks, and ride quality. ARA condensed this field data into a single zero-to-100 grade called a PCI for each road segment.  

Additionally, the assessment evaluated ride quality using the International Roughness Index, revealing that Tyler’s streets deliver a smooth overall drive, with 75 percent of roads experiencing only minor surface depressions. Historic brick streets were evaluated under a separate rating system designed specifically for brick paving rather than standard PCI. 

The report provides an overview of how Tyler's road network is performing over time. On paper, the citywide average score rose from 72.2 in 2021 to 76.2 in 2026 (not including brick streets). This increase was largely driven by two things: new housing and commercial developments adding newly built streets to the city network, and a one-time funding boost in 2023 that allowed the City to completely rebuild several severely damaged roads.  

The 2023 Reconstruction Project, which made street improvements on 12 lane miles, was an investment of more than $4.5 million. The project brought several streets from scores of less than 20 to 100, which helped to further increase the overall PCI. Without those improvements, comparing the exact same set of streets from 2021 without including the newly added roads, the average score would have dropped to 71.5.   

Understanding road conditions helps the City choose the right repair strategy at the right time. Catching minor wear early with preventive maintenance, like sealing small cracks, protects the road and saves money. Waiting until a street completely breaks down can cost two to 23 times more per mile to rebuild than applying early maintenance treatments. While neighborhood residential streets make up most of Tyler's total roads, collector streets overall remain in strong condition, and specific main thoroughfares have been identified for targeted care. 

In the coming months, the City Engineering team will use this assessment data alongside pavement management software to build detailed repair schedules and future budget options, which will be presented to the City Council at a future meeting. 

For more information and to view the full report, visit the City's Annual Pavement Maintenance Projects page.