CITY APPRECIATES CITIZEN’S PATIENCE AND COLLABORATION WHILE ADDRESSING STREETS WITH POTHOLES
Champaign – Due to lower-than-normal temperatures and higher-than-normal precipitation this winter, a larger number (than usual) of potholes have been appearing on City streets. Weather permitting, crews are working additional hours and weekends to repair the streets in a timely and efficient manner. Additional personnel have also been assigned to pothole repair tasks. Residents reporting potholes to Public Works via telephone, email or the SeeClickFix mobile application should expect a 48 to 72 hour turnaround time for crews to address the problem area so long as weather conditions permit work and road conditions are dry. With continued cold and wet temperatures, pothole repairs may not be permanent and require additional repair before warmer and drier conditions allow the repair to be fixed.
The City appreciates the patience of our residents and visitors while we work to repair the streets. The City encourages travelers to use caution when driving and avoid potholes or standing water visible on streets.
Frequently asked questions:
Reasons for high number of potholes
There are several factors contributing to the number of potholes being created this season.
– Street maintenance and pothole repair is part of Public Works staff routine work. Due to the amount of snow we have received, there have been more instances than usual where staff are redirected from routine street repairs to snow plowing. This has caused a backlog on routine work.
– We have had a higher amount of snowfall than the past several years. This additional snowfall melts and creates additional moisture, which is one of the contributing factors in pothole creation.
– We have had more instances of extreme weather temperatures this year than in the past several years. These swings of above normal temperatures to below zero temperatures, combined with the additional moisture are causing additional stress on the roads, creating more potholes.
Refilling potholes that have already been filled
There are several reasons that potholes may have to be repaired more than once:
– Ideal weather conditions for filling potholes are dry roads and warmer temperatures. If roads are wet, or there is water in the bottom of the pothole – we can make a repair to it, but it most likely will not be a permanent repair and will have to be addressed again. This is because if the pothole has water and it is filled, the water may freeze or drain out which then causes the patch to fall deeper or to break up completely.
– While there is still the potential for snow, we are aware that during snowplowing activities we may plow over a pothole that has been repaired. If the repair has not settled correctly, our plows do have the potential for scraping the patch away from the repair.
State of Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) Routes
The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) is responsible for plowing snow and repairing potholes on several routes throughout the City limits. The City does not have jurisdiction over the repair schedule of these streets.
IDOT maintained routes are
– Mattis Ave – Springfield Ave. to Bloomington Rd. (unmarked state route)
– Prospect Ave – Springfield Ave. to Marketview Dr. (state route 150 W)
– Neil St (state route 45)
– Bloomington Rd – west of prospect (state route 150)
– Springfield Ave – (state route 10)
– University Ave – west of Mattis Ave (Interstate 72 E)
– Church St – west of Mattis Ave (Interstate 72 W)
The City does report conditions to IDOT as received about these roads. Public Works staff also encourages citizens to report issues on these roads directly to IDOT at 217.465.4181. According to an IDOT press release, there are plans to do milling and overlay work on Mattis Ave and Springfield Ave. beginning February 24, 2014.