Potholes have popped up on, or rather sunken into, roads in and around Boston. State and local officials say many of their streets are riddled with the menacing crater-like holes thanks to the inevitable early spring moisture and freeze-thaw cycle.
Potholes result as water from snow and rain seeps into small cracks in the roadway surface. As temperatures drop, the water freezes and expands, making the cracks larger until potholes develop.
Elie Lakkas is the owner and head mechanic at Abe’s Complete Auto in Cambridge. He showed GBH News a damaged rack and pinion system on a vehicle caused by the impact from a pothole.“The rack and pinion parts, labor and alignment unfortunately is going to be about $1800, $1847 to be exact.”
Even with public works crews trying to patch the holes, local auto shops say they’re getting plenty of business. “The potholes have been generating rim and tire damage and today’s rims are not cheap. So an average repair can range between $500 and sometimes up to $2,000,” Lakkas said.
MassDOT spokesperson Marshall Hook says they work closely with public safety officers and city and town officials to monitor potholes. Hook explains crews make two types of repairs depending on temperature and road conditions. “A temporary ‘cold patch’ is used at lower temperatures during late winter. A hot mix asphalt is applied when the temperatures are as a long-term fix.”
Boston Public Works Department spokesperson Christopher Coakley told GBH News crews were dispatched during this week’s milder temperatures. “In between inclement weather events, the Public Works Highway Division has consistently dispatched crews citywide to make repairs to our neighborhood streets.” Coakley also encourages anyone who sees a roadway deficiency to report it to 311.
City of Cambridge Superintendent of Streets, T.J. Shea says this year, they’re taking a proactive approach with repairs. “We are having our crews drive down every single street marking off the street making sure we document any damage we see and repair them before they become a larger pothole,” he explained. “Before we typically addressed them after they were reported.” In years past, he says they would usually average about 500 to 800 pothole repair requests. This season, Shea says that number is down to about 200.
MassDOT says drivers whose cars are damaged by potholes can make a compensation claim to the city or town where it happened so long as it’s filed within thirty days. In Boston, you can file a claim with the City Clerk’s Office here . To report potholes on Massachusetts state highways, call MassDOT’s Pothole Hotline at (857) 368-4636 or you can report it online through the MassDOT website .
