Transportation Maintenance

Help Keep Clackamas County Clean and Beautiful

Join neighbors, local organizations, and businesses in keeping our roads litter-free. Through the Adopt-A-Road Program, you can make a visible difference in your community—and we’ll help every step of the way. 

Each year, volunteers collect around 60 tons of trash from county roads. Your efforts help protect our environment, improve neighborhood pride, and make Clackamas County a cleaner, safer place to live. 

How It Works 

When you adopt a section of county road, your group agrees to pick up litter along that stretch at least twice a year for two years. The county provides all the training, equipment, and support you need to stay safe and make an impact. 

What Volunteers Do 

• Apply to join. Submit an Adopt-A-Road application to get started. 
• Adopt your road. Choose a safe segment with help from our Program Coordinator. 
• Clean up twice a year. Schedule cleanup dates during daylight hours and let us know at least one week in advance. 
• Stay safe. Work only along the shoulder or right-of-way—never in traffic lanes or medians unless specifically approved. 
• Bag and leave litter. Fill trash bags and place them along the roadside or in a safe ditch for county pickup. 
• Use safety gear. Wear the provided high-visibility vests and set up temporary warning signs before each cleanup. 
• Review safety procedures. Go over safety guidelines with your team before every cleanup. 
• Sign waivers. Each participant must sign a liability release before joining a cleanup. 
• Youth participation. 
• Volunteers must be at least 12 years old. 
• Ages 12–18 require a signed guardian waiver and adult supervision. 
• Borrow supplies. You can borrow safety vests, trash bags, grabbers, and signs from the county. Please return them within one week. 
• Report hazards. Leave behind anything that looks unsafe or too heavy—like needles or large debris—and notify the county for proper removal. 

What the County Provides 

We’re here to make your cleanup easy, safe, and successful. The Department of Transportation and Development will: 

• Help you find a safe section of road to adopt. 
• Provide OSHA-approved safety gear, including vests, signs, and trash bags. 
• Offer safety training materials and review procedures with your volunteer lead. 
• Pick up filled trash bags and dispose of them after your cleanup. 
• Handle hazardous items that volunteers shouldn’t touch. 
• Recognize your efforts with a personalized roadside sign for groups that maintain at least one mile of road twice a year for two years. 

Volunteer Requirements 

To keep everyone safe and organized, Adopt-A-Road volunteers agree to: 

• Commit to a two-year adoption of a county road. 
• Complete at least two cleanups per year. 
• Set up temporary traffic warning signs during each cleanup. 
• Gather and return all borrowed equipment within one week. 
• Ensure all volunteers are at least 12 years old, with proper supervision and signed waivers. 

Get Recognized 

We love celebrating our volunteers! Groups or individuals who clean at least one mile of road twice a year will have a custom roadside sign installed in recognition of their contribution to the community. 

When Transportation Maintenance receives a winter storm forecast, we divide our workforce into 2, 12-hour shifts to provide 24-hour coverage on the county road network. Our approach is to get ahead of weather events to provide the safest conditions possible for those traveling in Clackamas County.

• Road maintenance priorities
• Preparation and operations
• How the public can help
• Contact us

Road maintenance priorities in winter weather

With more than 1,400 miles of county roads covering nearly 1,900 square miles, we have prioritized which roadways we attend to first, based on safety and meeting the needs of the largest number of people. As always, providing access for emergency vehicles is a top priority.

County roads are treated, plowed and sanded in the following order:

High	Major transportation routes with moderate to high traffic volumes and major collector routes (roads that collect traffic from neighborhoods) with moderate traffic volumes and steep roads serving residential areas. Major route examples: Beavercreek Road and Sunnybrook Boulevard.
Medium	Minor collector routes, urban residential roads, and rural local roads that carry moderate to low traffic volumes. These are plowed during regularly-scheduled work hours when staff and equipment are available.
Low	Urban residential cul-de-sacs and rural local roads with low traffic volumes are plowed during regularly-scheduled work hours depending on staff and equipment availability. Due to the size of the county, it is rare that road crews make it to low priority streets.

Once the severe weather is over, recovery may take even longer than the initial response. For example, sand applied during a 3-day snowstorm can take up to 3 weeks to remove. Therefore, we try to minimize the use of sand and use anti-icing material instead where possible.

Winter weather preparation and operations

Stockpiling
Storing necessary equipment and materials in anticipation of weather events allows us to be more effective and efficient. We have 18 sites throughout the county so trucks, equipment, and stockpiles of sand and magnesium chloride are ready when we need them.

Ice prevention
An application of chemicals that slows the formation of ice and prevents ice from sticking to the pavement. A solution of magnesium chloride can only be applied to the pavement when conditions are dry and the temperature is no higher than 40 degrees and falling. You may notice trucks spraying liquid in a series of lines that run along the road prior to freezing temperatures setting in, this is the ice prevention application.

Snow plowing
When snow accumulation has reached 2 inches and is continuing to fall, we will be on the roads plowing. We also plow bikeways that are directly connected to major roadways, but not bicycle lanes that are separated from the roadway by a barrier.

Snow/Ice removal
Snow plows clear the roadways and spread a mixture of sand and/or chemicals on top of the cleared snow pack or ice. When this layer softens after the treatment, then another pass of a snow plow will remove the next layer from the road surface to improve traction.

Clean-up
We sweep up sand from roads and on-street bicycle lanes after a winter storm to increase the safety of the roadway and protect environmental quality by keeping the sand and other de-icing materials out of the drainage system. Depending on the severity of the storm, clean-up can take several weeks.

How the public can help

If at all possible, don't abandon your vehicle on the roadway
Vehicles abandoned in the right-of-way create unsafe travel conditions for everyone else. Abandoned vehicles impact drivers' line of sight and block snowplows, emergency vehicles and public transit. If you abandon your vehicle in the right-of-way, you will be responsible for the towing expenses, as well as any damage caused from being an obstruction on the road.

Clear sidewalks, driveways and mailboxes
Property owners are responsible for removing snow from sidewalks in front of their property, and for clearing access to their driveway and mailbox. Please do not move snow onto the public roadway as you clear sidewalks and driveways, as this can create a hazard for travelers.

Increase your traction
You can equip your vehicle with better traction by using traction tires, snow chains or studded tires in winter weather. Practice putting snow chains or cables on your tires before the snow comes. Watch a video from ODOT showing how to install cable chains. If you use studded tires, note that they are allowed in Oregon from Nov. 1 to March 31.

Drive responsibly and be prepared
If staying home isn't an option during a winter weather event, you can plan ahead by giving yourself plenty of time to get to your destination, allowing for extra stopping distance and keeping tools in your car such as an ice scraper, car jack, jumper cables and road flares. Also bring water, food and blankets in your car if you have to venture out during a winter storm. You can use TripCheck to find road and weather conditions to be informed before you leave.

Contact us

If you have a concern about an unsafe roadway, please contact:

• Transportation Maintenance, 503-557-6391, during regular business hours (Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.) or during ongoing snowplowing operations. You can also report road concerns online or by email at RoadConcerns@clackamas.us.
• Sheriff/C-COM non-emergency number, 503-655-8211, after hours and during weekends and holidays.

Your Good-Natured Commute since 1914

The choice is yours: grind out the same old bumper-to-bumper commute or sit back and relax as you float across the Willamette for a few minutes of peaceful nature. The Canby Ferry is a car and walk-on ferry that transports people across the Willamette River between Canby and Wilsonville.

Directions from Wilsonville | Directions from Canby

Ferry Hours and Status

Fares

Effective July 1, 2025

Motorcycles, bicycles and pedestrians	$3
Punch Pass 20 crossings - Motorcycles, bicycles and pedestrians	$55
1 space vehicle (car/pickup/trailer - up to 22 feet in length)	$5
2 space vehicle (car/pickup/trailer - more than 22 and less than 44 feet in length)	$10
3 space vehicle (large oversize - more than 44 feet in length	$15
6 space vehicle (large oversize - using whole ferry)	$30
Save with a Punch Pass: Punch Pass 20 crossings (1 space vehicle)	$80

All fares are one-way. No debit or credit cards are accepted at the ferry; only cash or checks. Punch cards may be purchased online using a debit or credit card.

*Holidays include New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Fourth of July, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.

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How We Maintain Your County Roads

Clackamas County annually evaluates roadway conditions using a contracted pavement evaluation service. This data driven approach ensures we invest in the right treatment at the right time to extend the life of your roads.

The Evaluation Process

We use specialized software (StreetSaver) to manage the road network condition rating. Assessments are conducted through visual data collection to document:

• Pavement Distresses: We track eight specific types of wear, including Alligator (fatigue) cracking, Rutting, Raveling, and Patching.
• Ride Quality: How smooth the road feels for drivers.
• Structural Condition: The underlying integrity of the roadway.

Determining the PCI Score

These factors determine each road’s Pavement Condition Index (PCI) score. This score helps us choose the most cost-effective treatment:

• Preventive Maintenance: Crack sealing, chip seals, or slurry seals for roads in fair to good condition.
• Rehabilitation: Paving overlays for aging surfaces.
• Reconstruction: Full replacement for roads at the end of their lifecycle.

Planning and Coordination

To maximize your tax dollars, we use lifecycle modeling to identify the most cost effective timing for treatment. Addressing roads earlier in their deterioration cycle reduces long term costs.

Before any work begins, we coordinate with local utilities and agencies to avoid repeated construction in the same area, minimizing public disruption.

Seasonal Restoration Phases

Road restoration is typically delivered in two distinct phases:

• Winter–Spring: Preparation work, including drainage upgrades, vegetation removal, shoulder improvements, and base repairs.
• Summer: Final surface treatments, overlays, and striping.

This strategic approach supports a pavement service life of 15–20 years with ongoing preventive maintenance.