After harsh winter, pot holes plague roadways across Delmarva

The impact of a brutal winter is evident across Delmarva in the form of potholes.
“Some of them are just really, really bad,” says Dawn Pusey, a Wicomico County resident.

“There’s tons and tons of potholes that we’re all trying to avoid so that we don’t ruin our cars,” says Diana Young, a Wicomico County resident.

In just the beginning of March, AAA Mid-Atlantic reports that they handled more than 19,000 calls for flat tires due to potholes, but it’s not only on drivers minds.

In Wicomico County, Lee Outten, Superintendent of Roads, says they have had at least 100 reports of potholes since mid-February, and have staff responding to calls and patrolling for the holes on a daily basis.

In Delaware, the Department of Transportation says nearly 90 employees are on the pothole patrol, both looking for the holes themselves and responding to callers. Since March 8th, across the state, they have repaired more than 12,500 holes. In just Kent and Sussex County alone, more than 7,000 repairs.

“This year it just seems much worse than previous winters,” says Alastair Probert, a maintenance engineer with DelDOT. “It’s all come on very quickly.”

DelDOT has two options to solve the problem. First, they can use one of the state’s four “pot hole” patchers.

“The process is it blows the water out of the pothole, applies asphalt and stone, and layers until it fills it all up,” says Probert.

Most often, the road crew staff gets to work themselves. They apply a cold mix, a combination of asphalt and stone, which will harden and keep the filler in place.

DelDOT says the goal is to have Delaware pot hole free by mid-April, which will hopefully prevent costly car repairs. AAA says they can range from $90 for a wheel alignment, to $2,500 for suspension.

However the danger can go beyond your finances.

“I’m scared to death somebody will have a pothole in their lane and pull over in front of me or hit the side of me trying to avoid it,” says Young. “Let’s hope the weather stays nice so they’re really active in getting it taken care of.”

To report a pot hole in Wicomico County, call 410-548-4872. In Delaware, call 302.760.2080, or 800.652.5600.