They’re back. Potholes everywhere.
We spotted some DOT crews doing patch jobs, but for some behemoths we ran over it might take some time before things get better.
“If you see a pothole ahead, it’s OK to swerve to miss it, but you want to make sure you’re not going into an oncoming lane and get involved in a collision,” said Aaron Kupec, public affairs manager for AAA.
The bottom line here is that you really need take it slow when you go over one of these things because if you don’t your car isn’t the only thing that’s going to get hit. Your wallet will take a hit, too.
At Turnpike Motors Auto Body in Newington things are a little busier these days.
“You can cause premature suspension failure. You can bend the wheels. You can pop tires. All that causing accidents,” said Daniel Hovey of Turnpike Motors. “Another thing that we’re seeing is people swerving to avoid potholes and then striking other vehicles.”
The cost for repairing anything from a tire to suspension could be $100 to more than $500, and if you hit another vehicle or a guardrail the cost could skyrocket into the thousands.
“In the cracks in the pavement this time of year, with it freezing and thawing, it makes the cracks bigger and the plows come down and sweep them away so it’s going to happen every year,” Hovey said.
And while taking is slow is your best defense against the monster below, make sure your tires are properly inflated and even try doing the quarter test to check your treads.
“Using Washington’s head you want to put it into the groove of your tire and if there is tire covering his head you have enough [tread] on your tire. If you can see Washington’s head completely it’s time to start shopping for new tires,” Kupec said.