
Infrastructure Assets
The City of Urbana owns and operates infrastructure assets to serve the public with transportation, stormwater management, sanitary sewer service, public facilities, and the urban forest.
Other public infrastructure within our community that is not operated and maintained by the City includes:
- Power and Gas Generation and Distribution Systems
- Ameren Illinois, Inc. (Franchised)
- Drinking Water Treatment & Distribution System
- Illinois American Water Company (Franchised)
- Phone, TV, Fiber, and Other Telecommunication Services
- Multiple Providers Franchised and Licensed
- Parks
The purpose of the City's transportation network is safe and reliable travel for vehicles, pedestrians, and other active users. The network is organized by functional class into arterial streets, collector streets, local streets, alleys, and parking lots, each of which present different challenges based on use to mitigate safety concerns and maintain acceptable condition. See the region's traffic crash dashboard for the City's transportation safety record.
The local motor fuel tax (MFT) and the State MFT are dedicated to maintenance and capital improvement of the City's transportation network. Both MFT's are assessed per gallon of fuel purchased. The local MFT comes directly to the City from fuel purchased within City limits, whereas the State MFT is collected statewide and allocated to Urbana proportionally by population.
Pavement
The City's pavement includes streets, alleys, and parking lots. The majority of city streets were originally constructed with concrete or asphalt, with a small percentage constructed with brick. Bituminous surface treatment applications (combination oil/rock applications) and other preventative maintenance programs are expanding throughout the City's roadway network as they provide significantly reduce roadway condition degradation at a very low cost. See the City's pavement condition dashboard.
Sidewalks and Paths
City sidewalks and paths are intended to provide alternative and safe routes for active transportation and vulnerable road users in our community. This includes sidewalks, shared-use paths, and curb ramps. The City strives to maintain sidewalks and paths that are ADA/PROWAG compliant and in fair condition. See the region's sidewalk explorer dashboard for the condition of the City's sidewalks and paths.
Bridges
The City's bridge structures carry streets or pedestrian paths over waterways or railroads. Bridges that span 20-feet or more and carry vehicular traffic are inspected routinely according to the National Bridge Inspection Standards (NBIS). Smaller bridges and pedestrian bridges are inspected less frequently according to the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) standards. See IDOT's bridge information website for the condition of the City's NBIS bridges.
Lights, Signals, and Signs
Street lights, traffic signals, and traffic signs facilitate safe and efficient travel on City streets.
The City's interactive underground utility map shows where City-owned sewers are located.
Sanitary Sewers
The City's sanitary sewer collection system is a network of pipes and manholes that convey wastewater from individual properties to the wastewater treatment facility. The City's collection system discharges to a network of larger interceptor sewers that are owned and operated by the Urbana-Champaign Sanitary District (UCSD). UCSD also owns and operates the wastewater treatment facility, lift stations, and force mains.
Sewer service connections (commonly referred to as sewer service laterals or building sewers) are the typically smaller pipes that connect individual buildings to public sanitary sewers and are privately owned and maintained by the owner of the property they serve. The wye or tee that connects the private sewer to the public sewer is considered part of the public sewer.
A sanitary sewer benefit tax is dedicated to maintenance of the City's sanitary sewer collection system. The City's sanitary sewer benefit tax is based on water usage as a proxy for sanitary sewer use, and it is collected with UCSD's consolidated sewer bill.
Stormwater System
The City owns and operates a Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4), which collects and conveys stormwater while also managing water quality impacts to downstream waters of the U.S. The City's stormwater system is a network of street gutters or ditches, inlets, pipes, manholes, regional detention basins, and surface waterways passing through the City, such as Boneyard Creek, the Saline Branch Drainage Ditch, and the St. Joseph Drainage Ditch. See the Champaign County Stormwater Partnership site for more information about stormwater management in this region.
A stormwater utility fee is dedicated to maintenance of the City's stormwater system. The stormwater utility fee is based on the amount of impervious surface on a property because that relates to how much stormwater runs off the property and into the City's stormwater system. This fee is collected with UCSD's consolidated sewer bill.
The City's public facilities include City Hall, the Public Works campus, four fire stations, the landscape recycling center, a storage building, and a closed landfill.
The City's urban forest consists of trees and landscaping beds within street rights-of-way. Urbana has held the designation of Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation every year since 1976. The City takes great pride in being a charter member in the program and the first Tree City USA community in Illinois. See the City's public tree dashboard.