Potholes coming into bloom as Saskatoon faces freeze/thaw cycles

Potholes are popping up across Saskatoon as the city dips in and out of the cold weather with spring on the horizon.

Temporary repairs have already begun in the city, with residents able to report potholes on the City of Saskatoon website.

The city said temporary repairs using a cold mix will continue until hot mix asphalt becomes available in mid to late April.

“Residents are encouraged to help the city locate potholes and settled pavement cuts by calling the customer care centre or using Report-a-Pothole application for non-emergency locations,” the city said in a release.

1:26 ‘A symptom of the problem’: Manitoba’s potholes caused by climate, heavy use

The city also tracks reported potholes on its website, showing which potholes have been addressed and the priority of the ones that haven’t been fixed yet.

Cam Leclaire, acting roadways manager for the city said this year is shaping up to be a typical year for potholes, adding that it really depends on the freeze/thaw cycle and how much snow falls in Saskatoon over the winter.

Get daily National news

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

“We’ve got pothole crews out day and night responding to make repairs. And we have drainage crews out during the day and into the evening while things are melting off to make sure that things are draining,” Leclaire said.

Tyler McMurchy, SGI spokesperson, cautioned drivers to avoid potholes when possible, saying driving through them can damage the vehicle.

1:13 Saskatoon home badly damaged by serious fire

“Pothole damage is generally covered under your auto insurance, and it’s considered a single-vehicle collision, so it’s subject to the vehicle owner’s deductible,” McMurchy said. “Never trust a puddle.”

He said there has been 568 road bed collision claims in Saskatchewan over the last six weeks, which he said isn’t solely pothole claims.

“We’ve definitely seen an uptick in the last couple of weeks in those types of collisions.”

He said this is the time of year they expect these kinds of claims to come in.

McMurchy said drivers can report pothole damage to their vehicles through SGI’s online e-claim process or by visiting a claims centre.