The warmer weather this winter has kept potholes at bay for the most part but they are out there, Schuylkill County street workers and officials said.
“Potholes are going to happen. It’s a rite of spring in Pennsylvania,” Robert Williams, Orwigsburg borough manager, said Wednesday.
He said the street department has been filling potholes since earlier this month. Kimmels Church Road is one such location.
He said the potholes are not as bad as last year. Orwigsburg residents and motorists should call the borough office at 570-366-3103 to report a pothole.
“We appreciate them letting us know,” he said.
Bill Kirwan, road foreman in Norwegian Township, agreed the pothole conditions are not as bad as they were last year.
“Overall, we are in pretty good shape,” he said.
Although, he said, there may be potholes the street department does not know about.
Residents are encouraged to call the township office at 570-622-8638 and leave a message with their phone number and general location of the pothole or potholes. Workers were filling potholes earlier this month He said the township used about 3/4 ton of cold patch to fill in the gaps in the roads.
Tom Whitaker, Pottsville streets department supervisor, said Tuesday that the potholes were worse last year. He said there were no potholes they knew about before the Jan. 22 and 23 snowstorm that dumped more than 2 feet of snow in the city. The situation has now changed.
“I do want people to call me about the potholes,” he said.
He said residents and motorists can call the city garage at 570-622-7690 or City Hall at 570-622-1234 and ask for the street department to report a pothole. The city also has an online pothole reporting form at www.city.pottsville.pa.us.
Street department workers were filling potholes Monday on Terry Reiley Way in the city at several locations using cold patch. The regular material they use is not available until about late April. The city gets the blacktop from Pottsville Materials on Peach Mountain.
Rob Lynn and Dave Clark, streets department employees, with shovels in hand at 12:51 p.m., were scooping the mixture into a 3-by-3-foot pothole in front of Domino’s Pizza on Terry Reiley Way. Robert Benedict, another street worker, was also filling potholes.
As cars drive over the filled spots, the material is compacted.
“As long as it doesn’t snow again, it will last there for a while,” Clark said, adding snowplows likely dislodge cold patch from the potholes.
He said cold patch is only meant to be a temporary fix. The approximate 50-degree temperature is better for applying the mixture to the road.
“When it’s cold, it’s harder,” he said.
Whitaker said about 25 potholes were filled Monday in Pottsville. The department used about 24 tons of cold patch. Cold patch was used for a large pothole Tuesday, but the heavy rain may have caused it to wash away.
“Take your time driving. Pay attention to where you are going. Try to avoid them (potholes) if possible,” Clark said.