It is that time of the year again, when the freeze and thaw cycle of winter starts to reveal axel-breaking potholes on the streets of Montreal. Damaged hubcaps pile up on the side of the roads, cars swerve dangerously to avoid monstrous six-foot plus craters – and drivers’ nerves are put to the test. However, this year the City of Montreal is trying to get ahead of the ‘Game-Of-Holes’.
The City is taking advantage of the warm weather we have recently been experiencing, to put its pothole filling machines on to the main roads. Boroughs are at work as well on their local roads. Operations already began in Montreal on February 16th, filling a number of potholes that developed over the winter. The work will continue, but with the potential snow/ice/rain storm looming this week, other equipment to deal with the conditions will be mobilized as needed.
Pothole filling operations can only take place under specific weather conditions. It cannot be too cold and the pavement needs to be suitably dry for the work to be done. Based on the road conditions, they will decide on a daily basis whether to put the machines into action. Day and night work is planned on various roads in order to limit traffic obstructions, particularly in the city center. The routes are determined based on the condition of the roadways and adjusted according to the work needing to be carried out – in order to optimize their use. Each year, nearly 200,000 potholes are plugged – and citizens are invited to call 311 or use the Montreal Citizen Service application to report potholes and help the City carry out its operations.
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