City of Toronto begins pothole blitz

Watch the video above: City of Toronto begins pothole blitz. Jennifer Palisoc reports. 

TORONTO – City work crews will be out on Toronto streets over the next two or three days to fill in potholes created by recent extreme weather.

And those crews will be busy.  It’s estimated there are currently 4,000 potholes in the city, compared to 1,500 at this time last year.

Officials say the bitter cold combined with warming temperatures are causing breaks in the pavement.

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When water covers the road it can leak into small cracks in the pavement. The water then freezes during cold temperatures and expands, forcing the crack to grow.

“Well they do have an impact on the life expectancy of the roadway,” said Hector Moreno, the city’s manager of road operations. “They do deteriorate the roadway and so we try to stay ahead of the game through the first quarter of the year fixing potholes, then through the summer time doing more permanent repairs whether it be resurfacing or grind and paves or just crack sealing of cracks on the road.”

Moreno said city crews try to take advantage of warm spells in the winter and fix as many potholes as possible.

They say between 40 and 50 crews will be on pothole patrol and the holes should be patched up by the end of the week.

Citizens can report potholes by calling 311 or downloading the city’s mobile app or through an online form.

The city then uses that information to help map out its repair plan.