Residents, NYC Council Furious Over Pothole Minefield
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The Memorial Day weekend is synonymous with people packing up the car and heading out of town. But many of us are in for a rough ride; not because of traffic -- but potholes.
The city has said it can fill a crater in six days, but some frustrated drivers said Friday that's just not the case.
At 61st and West End Avenue, it's not a pothole, but a crater.
"I've seen at least six tires broken because of this. People make complaints. They call the city. They tell them to wait 14 days and they complain to me, but there's nothing I can do. It's horrible," school crossing guard Wendy Pomales told CBS 2's Marcia Kramer.
At 66th and Amsterdam there's a huge cavity that Department of Transportation "dentists" apparently have forgotten to fill.
"I think it would swallow a car up," Upper West Side resident Bob Timson said. "I've called the DOT and that number 3-1-1. They transfer me to, what do they call it, the repairs."
Do you know where potholes are? If so, please report them to CBS 2's Pothole Patrol
Winter is over, summer is almost here and city residents -- people on bikes, in wheel chairs, the elderly -- want to know what the city is doing to make the streets passable.
"It's very dangerous, very dangerous and I don't know why it's not being fixed right now," Upper West Side resident Louis Feiner said.
"One has to identify the places where you can cross the street effectively if you happen to be in a wheel chair, but this is bad for anybody," James Depreist added.
The city recently gave the DOT an extra $2 million to add to its pothole repair budget which just adds to public frustration.
"What are they doing with it?" Timson said.
DOT says it has fixed a record number of potholes -- 370,000 or 25 percent more than last year -- but City Councilwoman Gale Brewer said the agency needs to work harder.
"I want DOT to be more responsive. We need to make sure that DOT follows its own rules. The citizens of New York deserve to get their potholes fixed," Brewer said.
Kramer did get some action at 66th and Amsterdam. After she started asking questions a DOT worker arrived to measure the crater and take pictures. We can only hope it means the problem will be fixed.
Councilwoman Brewer said she intends to record data about each and every pothole in her West Side district so she can better pressure the city to fix the streets.
Late Friday, the DOT said it had called in crews to fix the street defects Kramer found.
Do you think the DOT is dropping the ball here? Or do you think it is doing the best it can? Please offer your thoughts in the comments section below.
