The 2025 City of Columbia Community Survey showed that one priority for Columbia residents is better road maintenance.
46% of residents surveyed said that they wanted to see road maintenance improvements in 2026, along with snow removal improvement as well.
Lee White, the assistant director of Columbia Public Works, said the progress from the city’s new pavement preservation program likely isn’t reflected in the 2025 community survey. The program, which was introduced last year, hopes to yield better road conditions in the future.
The plan in 2025 involved resurfacing more than 130 miles of lane street, which proved to be successful through different methods such as milling and overlaying and chip sealing.
“So we want the right treatment at the right time, and we're trying to get the right price,” White said. “So we do a number of different things, between chip seal to asphalt overlays, as well as like asphalt rejuvenators to extend that life there.”
White also said the city uses the PASER rating system to help identify which roads need treatment, and what tools are best suited to those repairs.
The PASER rating system is a visual inspection scale used to determine road conditions. The 1-10 scale gives officials an idea as to which roads need faster maintenance turnarounds.
University of Missouri engineering professor Bill Buttlar has researched pavements and road construction for more than 30 years, and he said the very hot summers and frigid winters in the Midwest increases the chances of potholes forming. Roads that are too hot can also damage vehicles.
“And it's not like we're building roads on rock or sand, you know, strong natural materials,” Buttlar said. “We're building on what's like farming soil, which is very soft. And so those are all the things that make it difficult to build and then maintain roads.”
Residents are advised to report poor road conditions by emailing pubw@como.gov, submitting a request through the SeeClickFix app or by posting on the Columbia Public works Facebook page with as much information as possible.
