(April 6, 2017) – As winter fades further away in the rear view mirror, spring brings another set of issues on the roads – potholes.  The Maryland Department of Transportation’s State Highway Administration (SHA) spends on average $4 million patching potholes each year and repairs approximately 29,000 square yards of paved surface, which equates to about 43,000 potholes.  An average cost to repair a pothole is $95, which includes the material, labor and traffic control in the work zones.

“This is an extremely busy time of the year for road crews repairing potholes and pavement,” said SHA Administrator Gregory Slater.  “SHA appreciates the public alerting us to the location of the potholes as well as using extra caution while driving near mobile work crews.”

A pothole is formed when moisture seeps into a pavement crack and freezes at night and thaws during the day.  This stresses the pavement and when traffic is introduced, a pothole forms. 

 

(SHA graphic: Birth of a pothole.)

The easiest and most convenient way to report a pothole is to visit SHA’s webpage at www.roads.maryland.gov and click “Contact us.”  Here you can report the location (s) of potholes by filling out and submitting a brief service request form that is delivered to the SHA maintenance shop responsible for that particular area.  SHA tries to repair a reported pothole within one business day.

SHA reminds motorists to “Move Over” when encountering highway construction and maintenance crews. Slow down and “Think Orange” and remember that maintenance workers often work on the highway without concrete barrier protection.