Potholes a Concern After Grueling Winter

This year's harsh winter might still be clinging to life, but the devastation caused by the season's heavy snowfall will be felt well into the months of spring.

The area's roads took a beating this winter, as plows, cars and trucks have torn open potholes throughout the region. Although every winter poses a threat to the streets, this winter's storms gave department of public works employees very little time to patch-up trouble spots.

"This year was very severe, so the roads are in worse shape than they've ever been," Harrison Department of Public Works Commissioner Anthony Robinson said during a town board meeting last week.

Deep potholes are typically created in the winter months, when water collects in cracks under the road's surface. When that water freezes it creates a hole that can be cracked by vehicles passing by. In the event of snow, plows passing by can cause further damage by chipping away the road surrounding the original hole.

After particularly snow-filled winter the holes can deepen, leading to popped tires, other vehicle damage and sometimes accidents.

Although the Harrison DPW has already started making repairs, the weather hasn't helped. On Wednesday, the third day of spring, the region is expected to be hit with a few more inches of rain and snow, making filling potholes impossible.

State roads have also seen their share of problems. Robert Castelli (R,C), who represents Harrison in the 89th Assembly District, recently wrote a letter to New York State Department of Transportation Commissioner Joan McDonald asking for the state to fix potholes that have become dangerous.

“Roadways in my district have been devastated and have dangerous potholes that have created serious safety hazards for the commuters within Westchester County,” the letter read.

Castelli has setup a "pothole hotline" for residents to report problem areas. 

The Harrison DPW, meanwhile, continues attempts to keep up with the growing problem. In place of cold patch, which is an asphalt mix applied cold and in smaller amounts, the DPW has started using hot patch, a more permanent solution, earlier than usual. The plan is to fill holes for the entire season, keeping crews from returning to the same spot twice in the same year. 

"What happens is we put the cold patch in the hole, people drive over it, a couple weeks later we get the call that the pothole is now deteriorated to the point we've got to go back," Robinson said.

But the benefit of cold patch is that it can be applied to specific locations with more ease. Trouble spots can be filled with cold patch sometimes without the need for a dump truck to drive to that location.

To increase efficiency, the DPW does not visit specific trouble spots unless they are deemed dangerous. Robinson said his department is creating a schedule to efficiently fill potholes street by street, without jumping to various locations in town.

But patching holes only buys time before a road needs to be resurfaced, a solution that isn't cheap. Robinson said the DPW has earmarked $5 million worth of resurfacing needed in Harrison, but said this year's budget only allows for $750,000.

"I'm thankful for that," he said, acknowledging the town's current financial struggles. "But that's 4/5 of the people on the list that are going to be disappointed."

If you have a pothole to report on a local road you can enter it into the town/village database by calling the department of public works. To report a problem on a state road call either (914) 686 – 7335 to reach Assemblyman Castelli's office or the state hotline at 1-800-768-4653.