Editor’s Note: The perennial pothole headache

The perennial pothole headache

Sarah Wright | Editor

‘Tis the season for potholes in the northern hemisphere, the bane of travelers and street departments. While other infrastructure maintenance needs are often concealed underground, potholes are front and center, and in the era of social media, they are vocally decried. TheClunkerJunker. com scanned Twitter to see which of the 50 states had the most pothole complaints on the platform. Rhode Island came in first, with a rating of 23.4 tweets per 1,000 kilometers of road. The city with the most was Atlanta, Ga., at 529.1 per 1,000 kilometers.

Do these figures equate worst streets? Not necessarily. They only mean these locations have particularly vocal residents on Twitter.

Vocal residents, however, are engaged residents, and some cities are seeking to channel that energy toward a common goal: pothole eradication.

In March 2021, Louisville, Ky., undertook its annual Pothole Blitz, where its road division repairs an average of 40,000 potholes each year. As a part of that blitz, the city encouraged residents to proactively report potholes needing to be filled. Three options were given, including even Twitter.

In an interview with WDRB.com, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said, “If you are on Twitter, you can use the hashtag #502pothole. Makes you feel like a real citizen, #502pothole. Just make sure you add the address or intersection that the pothole is located.”

The other options presented to Louisville residents included calling 311 or reporting through the Louisville Metro website. Louisville is not alone in this matter, with other cities utilizing similar avenues. In Washington, Seattle has developed the Find it, Fix it app.

Crowdsourcing is a great way to stay on top of potholes, but technology is adding another tool to the toolbox. The Municipal writer Denise Fedorow spoke with the city of Worcester, Mass., which has embarked on a pilot program using LIDAR technology to improve its street maintenance program. This program started small in the city’s cemetery but shows excellent promise for attaching equipment to city vehicles to monitor for potholes.

Of course, streets also need to be cleared of snow, but many street departments are struggling to find staffing to tackle this seasonal task. Writer Julie Young spoke with two cities — Moline, Ill., and Pittsburgh, Pa. — about their tactics to meet winter snow removal needs while also enticing the right candidates to apply for new or vacant positions.

Other topics include West Hollywood, Calif.’s, approach to spreading COVID-19 precaution awareness; a shift on Surprise, Ariz.’s, part to more desert-friendly landscaping; and Arvada, Colo.’s, aim to make its operations more energy conscious.

Happy New Year, everyone!