Potholes Still Abundant In New York City; State Allows Drivers To Sue
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Potholes continued to plague New York City this first of May, and many have been wondering just why they are still so bad.
CBS2 Political Reporter was demanding answers Friday from city Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg. It is a question she is probably sick of hearing, Kramer reported.
"It's been a tough and cold winter, as you probably know," Trottenberg said.
But winter is over, and Kramer asked further why there are so many potholes so late this year
"Well, you get the potholes -- as you probably know; you're a veteran of this issue – when you have a freeze-thaw cycle. So as soon as the cold weather turns warm, you start to see a lot of potholes emerge. And as we know, we've had a very – spring has been late in coming, so the cold weather kept us from doing some of our work," Trottenberg said.
By the numbers, the city filled 133,966 potholes from Jan. 1 through May 1, 2013. In the same period in 2014, 327,424 potholes were filled, and this year, it is 280,279 – down nearly 50,000.
According to AAA, damage from road repairs costs New York motorists $6.3 billion annually, and the average driver gets an extra $673 in damage to their cars from potholes
"When the roads are bad, and people crash into the road, they damage a lot of items on their cars," said AAA spokesman Robert Sinclair Jr. "Wheels and tires are number one."
But for New York drivers, May 1 is actually something of a milestone. Beginning Friday and continuing through Nov. 15, drivers can sue the state for up to $5,000 damage to their cars from potholes.
But that may be cold comfort.
"You can celebrate, because it's May 1, and now you can sue," Sinclair said. "But that means you damaged your car."
Drivers can file claims for pothole damage on any state road, but in demanding answers, Kramer found out something that is really starting. In the last two years, the state has paid out only $70,000.
AAA pointed out that the law protects the state from liability during the peak pothole months – January through April. When the law was first passed in 1910, there was apparently a shortage of asphalt production in the colder months.