BETTER ROADS: FEWER POTHOLES AND MORE REPORTING
If you drive in Saskatoon, you will have noticed there are significantly fewer potholes this year. Some of that is due to weather conditions, but the biggest factor is the increase in our snow and street maintenance operations this year as a result of the dedicated road levy.
Increased snow grading and removal this winter reduced the standing water on the streets that cause potholes. With less moisture on the streets at the start of spring, crews were able to get out and repair the potholes sooner than last year. We were not only out there patching sooner, but we were able to patch the potholes that are causing the biggest problems for drivers. Since its launch March 17, there have been 557 (88 since March 28 news release) locations reported by residents in all areas of the city using the Report a Pothole interactive map. Up to ten new pothole locations are being reported daily by residents and visitors to Saskatoon from their mobile device or desktop.
The weather is also cooperating this year with gradual warm weather that allows the ground frost to come out of the ground slowly. Potholes can be caused by pressure on the asphalt as a result of the ground frost coming out quickly. The temperature spike expected for next week may cause the frost to move very quickly out of the ground and increase the potential for more potholes.
Pothole patching crews repaired 350 (103 since March 28 news release) of the larger reported pothole on major streets, plus hundreds of others! Until the roads are completely dry and the asphalt supplier produces hotmix for our use, the priority is emergency locations and larger potholes in the driving lanes of the high-traffic streets. Beginning mid-April, the Spring Pothole Blitz will address the remaining potholes on higher traffic volume and speed roadways, including arterials, collector and freeway/expressways. The residential streets will be repaired beginning in May and run in conjunction with the Residential Street Sweeping program.
About a third of the locations currently reported on the map are another type of issue resulting from completed City or private underground utility work that required an excavation. These are known as utility cuts and have a temporary gravel/recycled asphalt cover until they can be properly paved once ground frost is gone. Those on arterial and major streets are monitored and re-grading regularly. Until permanent repairs are made we will be leaving these reported locations as red dots on the Report a Pothole map.
Severe and emergency locations are addressed immediately by the nearest pothole patching unit. Large potholes in the driving lane of Priority 1 and 2 streets will be scheduled for repair the next day. The inspector, along with area supervisors and crews, is also on the look-out for unreported severe/emergency potholes. The more information supplied by those reporting online the inspectors have, the easier it is to determine the priority of the necessary repairs. The reported potholes, represented by red dots on the map, are updated to green dots at the end of the day they are repaired.
Please report severe/emergency locations to Customer Service at 306-975-2476 so we can fix them as quickly as possible. For more information about the pothole and utility cut programs, visit saskatoon.ca and select “P” for Potholes.
For more City of Saskatoon Public Service Announcements, News Releases, Traffic Detours and Service Alerts, visit www.saskatoon.ca/go/traffic. You can also follow us on Twitter @cityofsaskatoon and with #betterroads and like Saskatoon City News on Facebook.