Flowers, sunshine, and potholes. The staples of spring have made their way to Saskatchewan, some sooner than others.
“You basically just have to dodge the potholes where you can, it’s a narrow street so when you meet an oncoming vehicle you have to try and navigate around them and drive right through them,” Aaron Langford, a Runciman Crescent resident, said.
Runciman crescent in the city’s north-end is just one of dozens of examples across Regina; a residential road was strewn with potholes, nearly impossible to avoid.
Residents have repeatedly called the city, but haven’t seen any action.
“It just seems every year it gets worse and worse, the city comes out and they patch it in the spring but then it just amplifies it and more stuff pops out. It’s getting to the point where I don’t think you can patch it, I think it just needs to be replaced.”
Even major arteries like Arcola Avenue and Saskatchewan Drive have their fair share of potholes to avoid.
The city says they’re aware of the issue.
“Throughout the winter with the lack of snow, we’ve actually had crews going out and addressing potholes, and right now crews will be out working on arterial routes and high-speed roads, they’ll be addressing those first, Norman Kyle, the directors of roadways and transportation noted.
The frigid forecast is likely to only worsen the issue; both on the roads and underneath them. Along with more potholes, it brings the potential for more water main breaks.
Regina has already seen 35 breaks this month which is well above average.
“This is still a high year for our average, usually we’ll see about 10-15 water main breaks in March. Our record in 2014 was 64,” Pat Wilson, the waterworks director said.
Both potholes and water main breaks will eventually slow down as the temperature warms up, but they don’t appear to be getting better in the near future.