See a Pothole – Report It
City’s Street Maintenance Wants to Know Where They Are
DURHAM, N.C. – Winter weather brings more than cold temperatures with snow and ice – it also brings dreaded potholes, and the City of Durham wants to hear about it.
Durham residents are urged to report potholes to Durham One Call at (919) 560-1200, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays, or after hours and on weekends via the Durham One Call online service request form at www.durhamnc.gov/departments/onecall/online_index.cfm.
According to Katie Kalb, director of the City’s Public Works Department, the recent rash of icy, winter weather has taken its toll on city streets and the department wants to know where the potholes are located as soon as possible. “January through March is the roughest time of year for our streets and is the timeframe when we receive the most reports of potholes,” Kalb said. “Right now, we need to know where all of the potholes are so we can get them into the system to be repaired as soon as asphalt is available.”
According to Kalb, the department strives to repair potholes within five-to-eight business days, but is often at the mercy of local asphalt plants for getting the necessary materials to complete the job. “During the winter, the asphalt plants are not open daily, so it really affects whether or not we can repair the potholes as quickly as we would like. If the pothole is severe and a safety hazard, we will use ‘cold patch’ as a temporary fix and then come back later when hot asphalt is available for a more permanent repair. But, first we need to know about them, so we can get them on the list to fix as soon as we get asphalt, or let the State know if the pothole is on a State-maintained street,” Kalb said.
As soon as asphalt plants open again, Kalb said that three pothole repair crews will be working to permanently repair potholes that were temporarily fixed with cold patch, and to fill the potholes that have been reported. When reporting potholes to the City, motorists are urged to be as detailed as possible on the specific location of the pothole as well as its approximate size. Kalb said not to worry if you don’t know if the street is City or State-maintained – Durham One Call has the software to identify that information and to notify the State if needed, or send the service request to the City’s Public Works Department. “We just want to know where the potholes are at since our motorists cover a lot more ground each day than our crews,” Kalb said. “Just call us with the location and size of the pothole and we’ll handle the rest.”
Until asphalt becomes available again and the weather warms up enough to lay asphalt, the City asks motorists to be patient. “Street maintenance crews have been told that filling potholes is their highest priority,” Kalb said.
To learn more about Operation Green Light, the City’s ongoing effort to keep residents informed about progress the City’s Public Works Department is making toward smoother streets for Durham, visit www.DurhamOperationGreenlight.org
