Potholes and Michigan roads are no less a pair than peanut butter and jelly, but not all potholes are created equal.
7 Actions News turned to its viewers to find the most troublesome spots in the metro Detroit area, and saw more than 100 responses in less than 24 hours.
One of the most common complaint areas: Mound Road in Macomb County.
“It’s the worst,” said Justin Pate, a business owner who said it’s a costly endeavor just to keep his crew’s vehicles on the road. “Our shop is actually five miles up the road (on Mound Road). It’s absolutely awful, we can’t even keep our trucks straight driving down it.”
Those complaints were no surprise to the Macomb County Road Commission. 7 Actions News contacted the county about viewer concerns, we were told road crews were already preparing to hit the area with patches, they said it’s a regular occurrence for them because they’re battling an early winter thaw that’s left the road crumbling.
One maintenance worker pointed out that there is no permanent fix this time of year. Instead crews rely on patchwork to avoid what they call “tire busters.”
One viewer, Chris Wisswell, noted that her car hit a pothole and led to a tow truck ride. Her car didn’t just suffer a blown tire, or bent rim. She broke a tie rod leading to a costly repair bill.
Road crews were patching that same pothole on Tuesday.
Over in Oakland County, three road maintenance crews were out in full force.
According to Craig Bryson, this is the worst time of the year for them. Thanks to an early thaw the roads started to crumble. He told 7 Action News that roads throughout the county are crumbling every hour, and they’re doing their best to keep up to keep drivers safe.
“We know it’s a band-aid, but it’s the only cost effective option this time of year,” said Bryson, noting that more permanent repair work will pick back up when the weather allows. “We are keeping a running list that is growing constantly. It’s literally from Holly to Madison Heights and Ferndale. It’s from Oxford, Madison; down to Lyon and Novi.”
Bryson urged people who see trouble spots in Oakland County to contact the county’s road commission, or the local municipality that’s in charge of the road.
They’ve been rotating crews to hit the trouble spots ever since the thaw began, and will continue to do so until snow and ice return.
We’ve compiled a list of websites and phone numbers you can call with pothole concerns:
* Macomb County:http://roads.macombgov.org/Roads-Home-Request
* Oakland County: For emergencies call: (877) 858-4804, for typical pothole concerns go to: http://www.rcocweb.org/FormCenter/Contact-Us-4/Contact-Us-Form-43
* Livingston County: Call: (517) 546-4250
* Lapeer County: http://www.lcrconline.com/service_request.asp
* Washtenaw County: http://www.wcroads.org/report
* Wayne County: http://waynecounty.com/dps/complaint.htm
* MDOT: http://www.michigan.gov/mdot/0,4616,7-151-9615_30883---,00.html
