News Releases
City crews patch 636 potholes this week
(Sent: 2010-01-15 15:26:54)NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, January 15, 2010
Contact: Megan Gilliland, communications manager, (785) 832-3406
City crews patch 636 potholes this week
(Lawrence, Ks.) – The City of Lawrence street division has been busy patching potholes this week. Since Monday, Jan. 11, a total of 164 potholes were reported through the city’s online and telephone reporting systems. These notifications and surveys by city crews have resulted in a total of 636 potholes patched throughout the community this week. This week’s repairs required the use of 27.5 tons of asphalt.
“The extremely severe weather has caused a significant amount of potholes,” said Mark Thiel, assistant director of public works. “The freeze-thaw cycle we are experiencing each night is tough on the roads and causes potholes to appear more rapidly.”
On average, the city’s street division has one, three-man crew that works continuously during the work day to repair potholes. Given the severity of the weather over the past few weeks, the city currently has three crews dedicated to pothole repair. On Thursday, Jan. 14alone, crews worked overtime and patched 244 potholes with 15.5 tons of asphalt.
“We’re using two different methods for patching,” states Thiel. “We were able to bring in a significant amount of hot mix asphalt in addition to the more traditional cold patch method. The advantage to using hot mix is that it lasts longer and the repairs should hold up better in the elements.”
To report a pothole, contact the street division at (785) 832-3031 or fill out the city’s online pothole reporting form at http://www.lawrenceks.org/public_works/pothole_report_form.
“We appreciate the public’s help in notifying us of the problems,” said Thiel. “We strive to complete the repairs within 48 hours from the time they are reported. With the weather being what is has been for the past couple weeks, we’re working hard to get everything patched quickly.”
Thiel indicated because of the constant freeze-thaw at night, some potholes that have been repaired have already dislodged. Crews continue to monitor the potholes and will re-repair the affected areas as needed.
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