Pothole season usually occurs in the spring, but this year it’s here a little earlier than expected. Drivers often pay a lot of money due to vehicle repair costs from these potholes. TRIP, a non-profit national transportation company, hopes to help.
Transcript
Ben Deitrick: Spring is quickly approaching, and that means poor road conditions, mostly from potholes, are about to be in full swing. AAA communications specialist Valerie Puma says this could leave a dent in drivers’ pockets.
Valerie Puma: This is based on 2022, on average the vehicle repair cost was a little over $400.
Deitrick: Not only do potholes hurt drivers’ wallets, but it’s also hurting their tires. AAA operations assistant manager Jon Carroll says it hurts drivers from this area more than most other places.
Jon Carroll: About 14% of all calls were tire-related, whereas the national average was about 12% of all calls were tire-related.
Deitrick: This year, these road conditions come a little earlier than expected. Puma explains how the weather plays an effect into the growth of potholes.
Puma: Any of that moisture that got into the pavement during that colder season, now that it has expanded, contracted, it’s melting away.
Deitrick: It’s not all doom and gloom for local drivers. There are ways to help mitigate this issue.
Deitrick: While potholes may never completely go away, carroll says as long as you have safe tires, you shouldn’t be too affected.
Carroll: A properly inflated tire can be the difference of a tire going flat from hitting a pothole and, you know, being able to withstand the impact from a pothole.
Deitrick: Ben Deitrick, NCC News.
Liverpool, N.Y. (NCC News) – Spring is almost in the air, and there are plenty of reasons to get excited.
But there’s also a negative side to spring, particularly for drivers: bad road conditions that can hurt their wallets.
“This is based on 2022, on average the vehicle repair cost was a little over 400 dollars,” said Valerie Puma, communications specialist at AAA Western and Central New York.
Because of the warmer winter Central New York had this year, pothole season is coming earlier than expected.
“Any of that moisture that got into the pavement during that colder season, now that it has expanded, contracted, it’s melting away,” Puma said.
According to Jon Carroll, operations assistant manager at AAA Western and Central New York, local drivers report tire concerns more than anyone else.
“About 14% of all calls were tire-related,” Carroll said. “Whereas the national average was about 12% of all calls are tire-related.”
Poor road conditions can have adverse consequences.
There are reasons for optimism, however.
Carroll says as long as drivers keep their tires safe, there’s no reason to panic.
“A properly inflated tire can be the difference of a tire going flat from hitting a pothole and, you know, being able to withstand the impact from a pothole,” Carroll said.
TRIP, a non-profit national transportation organization, also wants to get involved.
According to a TRIP report finding, Rocky Moretti, Director of Policy and Research at TRIP, said 44% of roads in Syracuse are in either poor or mediocre condition.
Moretti believes cost-effective roadway safety improvements is the best way for governments to fix the issue.
SyrCityLine keeps information about potholes in the area. Besides just collecting data, the website allows residents to report any incidents relating to poor road conditions to promote awareness about the issue
Road conditions get worse this time of year, but drivers shouldn’t worry too much, according to AAA Western and Central New York’s Jon Carroll.