Pothole issues cause constant repair
Sarah Zavala
Issue date: 4/15/09 Section: News
Potholes are a major problem people in the city of Macomb have dealt with for many years.
"The potholes are caused by the freeze-thaw cycle," said Jude Kiah, director of the GoWest Transit System. According to Kiah, cold weather freezes portions of the pavement that thaw in warm weather, causing stress on the pavement that leads to cracking.
Cold winter months are the worst, and now the Macomb Public Works office is working constantly to repair the streets.
Macomb Public Works Operations Manager James Teater explained that Macomb has a new truck for fixing potholes, a machine that costs about $55,000.
"Every year we prepare a budget to propose to the City Council. We may ask for three new trucks but only get one," Teater said. He explained that taxes have not been raised in order to fix the pothole problem because if the budget does not get approved, they do the best with what they have.
"The Total Patcher (machine) is only two years old, and it's a lot better than just shoveling asphalt from a truck bed," said Scott Kelly, Public Works Operator.
Kelly described how he could be out fixing potholes all day and there will still be plenty more that need fixing. The machine, however, gets the job done and more efficiently than shoveling asphalt.
"I learned in my construction class that Western Avenue was not built to hold buses with their weight capacity," Charlie Ryan, junior construction management major said.
Though this may be true, there are not just potholes on the streets surrounding the campus - they are all over town. The blame can not solely be put on the GoWest buses. However, a bus that weighs about 16 tons and drives the same route daily can cause some damage to pavement.
Damage to the pavement is not the only thing to be concearnedabout. Vehicle damage is another problem.
"I have a car on campus, and the pot holes are terrible for driving," Ryan said. "You really need to pay extra attention, otherwise your car can be damaged."
"The potholes cause me to be more cautious," said Ricky Szewcyzk, a GoWest driver. "I try to avoid them by swerving out of the way."
Szewczyk, a driver for six years, four of which have been on the Green Route, said he knows where the bad potholes are and how to avoid them.
"So far the pot holes have not caused any damages on the buses," Kiah said.
Even while GoWest drivers do the best they can to avoid the pot holes and Macomb Public Works office works hard to fix the problem, it seems that the pothole problem is far from over.
"The potholes are caused by the freeze-thaw cycle," said Jude Kiah, director of the GoWest Transit System. According to Kiah, cold weather freezes portions of the pavement that thaw in warm weather, causing stress on the pavement that leads to cracking.
Cold winter months are the worst, and now the Macomb Public Works office is working constantly to repair the streets.
Macomb Public Works Operations Manager James Teater explained that Macomb has a new truck for fixing potholes, a machine that costs about $55,000.
"Every year we prepare a budget to propose to the City Council. We may ask for three new trucks but only get one," Teater said. He explained that taxes have not been raised in order to fix the pothole problem because if the budget does not get approved, they do the best with what they have.
"The Total Patcher (machine) is only two years old, and it's a lot better than just shoveling asphalt from a truck bed," said Scott Kelly, Public Works Operator.
Kelly described how he could be out fixing potholes all day and there will still be plenty more that need fixing. The machine, however, gets the job done and more efficiently than shoveling asphalt.
"I learned in my construction class that Western Avenue was not built to hold buses with their weight capacity," Charlie Ryan, junior construction management major said.
Though this may be true, there are not just potholes on the streets surrounding the campus - they are all over town. The blame can not solely be put on the GoWest buses. However, a bus that weighs about 16 tons and drives the same route daily can cause some damage to pavement.
Damage to the pavement is not the only thing to be concearnedabout. Vehicle damage is another problem.
"I have a car on campus, and the pot holes are terrible for driving," Ryan said. "You really need to pay extra attention, otherwise your car can be damaged."
"The potholes cause me to be more cautious," said Ricky Szewcyzk, a GoWest driver. "I try to avoid them by swerving out of the way."
Szewczyk, a driver for six years, four of which have been on the Green Route, said he knows where the bad potholes are and how to avoid them.
"So far the pot holes have not caused any damages on the buses," Kiah said.
Even while GoWest drivers do the best they can to avoid the pot holes and Macomb Public Works office works hard to fix the problem, it seems that the pothole problem is far from over.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
EmptyJ
posted 4/15/09 @ 11:06 AM CST
Come on, Jude. Your GoWest busses are the main cause the potholes. It doesn't take a genius to see that roads are covered in potholes due to (unnecessarily) frequent bus routes. (Continued…)
AJD
posted 4/15/09 @ 12:06 PM CST
I agree...it's unbelievable that some people wait for a bus to take them somewhere they could reasonably walk. The bus routes that go elsewhere in town or pick up students from their rental houses that are somewhat far from campus (in cold and snowy weather especially. (Continued…)
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