Pothole season taking its toll on New York area roads, drivers

ByEyewitness News WABC logo
Tuesday, February 13, 2018
Potholes taking toll on roads, drivers
Jim Dolan reports on the New York area pothole problem.

NEW YORK (WABC) -- A large pothole caused major delays Monday for drivers on the FDR Drive heading to the George Washington Bridge.

And it is one of many turning up around the Tri-State area during the winter weather.

Along the Major Deegan Expressway this time of year, hubcaps fly like Frisbees and wind up on the road, the ghosts of potholes past.

Right after NewsCopter 7 saw one little pothole near Fordham Road, a Department of Transportation crew came by and put blacktop over it, but not before it devoured tires, including Marie Inserra's.

"I was driving in the left lane, and I didn't see this thing until it was too late, it was about a foot and half or more wide. I went right into it and my tire flattened," she said.

Marie called 911 to tell them about the danger and they said they would get to it.

"I believe she said 30 days, so this is not a 30 day event, this has to be dealt with immediately," said Marie.

Not everyone of course is so upset about the return of pothole season. It's been great for business at the Capusano Tire Shop, which gets lots of business from the traffic on the crater-filled Deegan. They were working overtime Monday night.

In a statement, the DOT said "DOT works year-round to repair potholes, with a primary focus on winter. Our average response time is 1.5 days."

It is not a number that much impressed Marie Inserra.

"Not a good end to the day," she said.

If you see a pothole that needs to be fixed, you can report it to Eyewitness News.

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