Mayor Garcetti Launches Pothole Repair Operation 'Neighborhood Blitz'

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Mayor Eric Garcetti Monday kicked off operation "Neighborhood Blitz" to repair potholes on Los Angeles streets.

The operation was launched at 10:30 a.m. when a pothole repair truck was dispatched at the intersection of Woodman Avenue and La Maida Street in Sherman Oaks.

"I said when I was campaigning it was important to get back to the basics, and nothing's more basic than a pothole," Garcetti told KNX1070. "Twice a year, every single one of the neighborhood council areas will have the trucks out there looking themselves for where they can find the potholes and filling them before people even have to call them in."

"We have had 70 years of neglect. It won't turn around over night, but we can't keep nickel and diming our streets. This is where public transportation goes over, these are where our cars go over, and a little bit of neglect costs us a lot on the back-end," he said.

According to new research done for USA Today, only 38 percent of the nation's pavement is rated in "good" condition, and one in 10 of the nation's bridges are considered "structurally deficient", KNX1070 reports.

"We did a report a couple of years ago that estimated about two-thirds of Los Angeles roads were in poor condition, and the average motorist in the Los Angeles area paid an additional $746 annually to maintain their vehicle on those rough roads," said Frank Moretti, director of policy and research at the transportation research group TRIP.

Following Monday's blitz in Sherman Oaks, the operation will move on over the next two weeks to Sunland-Tujunga, Foothill Trails, Pacoima, Sylmar, Granada Hills North, Porter Ranch, Chatsworth, and Northridge.

Residents can use MyLA311 mobile app, which was launched earlier this year, to take pictures and report potholes.

RELATED STORY: Mayor Launches New 'MyLA311' App For City Services, Information

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• Eric Garcetti
• Sherman Oaks