Street Operations
The mission of Street Operations is to provide high-quality, innovative, and cost-effective maintenance of City streets, signs, and rights-of-way with the highest service level possible to the residents of Tacoma.
The Street Operations Division is responsible for maintaining:
- 857 lane miles of main arterial streets and 8,000 residential blocks
- Lane miles are miles of lanes as opposed to miles of streets since streets have several lanes
- More than 38,000 street signs
- Many (but not all) medians, islands, and roundabouts
- 20 parks (those not maintained by Parks Tacoma)
The Division’s primary efforts include the Grounds Maintenance Program, the Street Repair and Maintenance Program, the Traffic Signs and Markings Program, and Emergency Response. These services enhance the lives of our citizens and the quality of our neighborhoods and, business districts.
Contacts and Services
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- Snow and ice emergencies
- Traffic obstructions and hazards
Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Phone: (253) 591-5495 -
- Potholes
- Alley grading requests
- Street repair
- Debris in roadway
- Damaged or missing street signs
Phone: (253) 591-5495Email: streetoperations@tacoma.gov
Additional Information
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The Grounds Maintenance Program is responsible for various medians, islands, roundabouts, and rights-of-way throughout the community. The program also maintains trees and landscaping, cleans up litter, and removes graffiti for the Tacoma Fire Department, Tacoma Police Department, Environmental Services, and the following City parks:
- S. 17th Street & Jefferson Ave.
- S. 15th Street & Dock Street
- S. 5th Street & Division Ave.
- Frost Park (S. 9th Street & Pacific Ave.)
- S. 10th Street & Pacific Ave.
- Tacoma Park (above McCormick Park on Tacoma Ave. S.)
- Harborview Park (929 Fawcett Ave.)
- McCormick Park (Fawcett Ave. & Court E, 9th & 11th)
- Firefighter’s Park (S. 8th Street & A Street)
- Norton Memorial Park (S. 1st Street & Tacoma Ave. S.)
- Gateway Park (N. 30th Street & N. Starr Street)
- War Memorial Park (6th Ave. & N. Jackson Ave.)
- Ben Gilbert Park (Market Street & St. Helens Ave.)
- Viewpoint Park (Norpoint Way & Marine View Dr.)
- Tollefson Plaza (S. 17th Street & Pacific Ave.)
- Ledger Park (S. 7th Street & St Helens Ave.)
- S. 23rd Street & Grant Ave.
- Tot Lot (S. 74th Street & S. Cedar Street)
- Fern Hill (S. 84th Street & Park Ave S.)
- Ray C. Roberts Park (802 E. Division Ln)
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The Street Repair and Maintenance Program is responsible for maintaining 857 lane miles of main arterial streets and 8,610 residential blocks. The following efforts are used to minimize subgrade water erosion, which breaks down streets:
- Crack Sealing
- Crews clean a crack in the road and fill it with an elastic, rubber-based material that moves with pavement to prevent moisture from causing further harm.
- Temporary Pothole Patching
- Crews repair depressions by filling and compacting them with asphalt, which may provide a temporary fix for up to a year. Reported repairs are generally able to be
- accomplished within two to ten business days.
- Permanent Pavement Repair
- Specially trained crews make permanent pothole repairs with specialized equipment to remove sections of degraded pavement and replace it with concrete or
- reinforced asphalt. Crews may also need to replace the underground crushed rock base material.
- Hot Mix Asphalt Overlays
- Crews add a 2-inch layer of asphalt over older streets that have outlived their serviceable life. Streets selected for this treatment have often required continuous pothole repairs. Generally, City crews perform residential street work, while the work on main arterial streets is performed by contractors selected through a public bidding process.
The Street Repair and Maintenance Program is also responsible for:
- Grading approximately 1,500 blocks of gravel alleys and 78 blocks of gravel residential streets.
- More than 38,000 informational (street names, wayfinding) and regulatory (stop, yield, speed limit) street signs.
- Repairing concrete streets.
- Installing new ADA-compliant curb ramps to help all members of our community access services, necessities, and amenities.
- Rebuilding unsafe sidewalks adjacent to the City’s publicly owned properties.
The Street Operations Division’s Asphalt Plant also produces over 10,000 tons of asphalt per year. The City uses this material to repair City streets. The plant uses recycled asphalt shingles and grindings to minimize waste and reduce asphalt oil needs.
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The Street Operations Division provides traffic sign maintenance, inspection, and installation. Well-maintained signs are important to drivers in making good decisions. Traffic signs are utilized as a method of warning and guiding drivers, helping regulate the flow of traffic among vehicles, pedestrians, motorcycles, bicycles, and others who travel city streets.
Many signs require or advise drivers to take specific actions. These signs must be clean, legible, used correctly, and in good condition. There are three major kinds of signs:
- Regulatory
- Warning
- Guide
Crews replace and maintain traffic signs throughout the City. Useful information when reporting a sign problem are the type of sign, nearest intersecting street names, direction of travel, and what type of problem (sign is down, sign is missing, post is bent, etc.).
To report a sign missing, damaged, or down, please submit a request through Tacoma FIRST 311.
We replace missing or downed STOP or YIELD signs 24 hours a day. Please call (253) 591-5495.
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The Street Operations Division is available to respond to community emergencies 24/7:
- Hazardous chemical spills
- Landslides
- Urban flooding
- Snow and ice management
- Removing downed or hazardous trees impacting streetlights, traffic signals, or rights-of-way
- Street closures in response to Tacoma Police Department and Tacoma Fire Department requests
- Wind and snowstorms
During the one or two major snow events that are typical each year, Street Operations maintains 410 land miles of arterial streets. For the traveling public’s safety, crews de-ice by applying salt brine to elevated roads, hills, and shaded areas prior to frost forming. Crews also plow snow from driving lanes and may need to repair/replace damaged signs and clear catch basins of ice dams or debris to prevent flooding. During such times, crews may also clear snow/ice from sidewalks and stairs adjacent to City property or remove downed/hazardous trees from City property and rights-of-way. Visit the inclement weather resources web page to learn more.
Free Sandbag Supplies
The City’s Public Works and Environmental Services departments are providing free sandbag supplies to the public for personal use. While supplies last, community members can come to one of two locations to shovel and load their own sandbags. Both locations are open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. from approximately October through March (the exact 2025/2026 dates will be announced later this fall).
- Tacoma Asphalt Plant at 3010 Center St. in Tacoma. Call (253) 591-5495 for more information.
- Â Central Wastewater Treatment Plant at 2201 Portland Ave. E., Gate 3, in Tacoma. Call (253) 502-2150 for more information.
