Roadways
Potholes
Potholes - no one likes them. They seem to pop up by magic almost overnight. In reality potholes are created in a number of ways. The most common way is when water seeps into cracks in the surface of the road and, combined with the vibration of the tires over the cracks, causes the asphalt to fail. That is why there are more potholes after it rains. Potholes are also created when the roadway is stressed by trucks and buses, which can cause a movement of the subsurface. Once there is a weak spot, every car that travels over it makes the problem worse, and eventually a section of the material will fail, causing a pothole.
Street Division repairs over 30,000 potholes per year using everything from a hot patch truck to bagged asphalt. Street Division's goal is to fix all potholes reported to us as soon as possible. Priority is given to potholes that may affect drivers, the rest are on a first come, first served basis. Every so often, and especially after a long rainy season, Street Division crews will work on a "Pothole Saturday". This is a day where all crews work only on filling potholes. Crews are given a section of the City and work all day finding and filling potholes in that area. We know that we cannot find all the potholes in the City, so we rely on the public to report potholes when they see them.
To report a pothole call (619) 527-7500 or use our online Service Request system.