The hole truth: Saskatchewan cities prepared for pothole season

With the snow and ice melting, another headache for drivers is once again becoming apparent in Saskatchewan — potholes.

Neil Lloyd, a service manager with a Canadian Tire in north Regina, said he has already seen the damage potholes can do.

“We had one with a broken shock. The other one (had) shocks (that) were loose and the guy said, ‘Yeah, it’s because of our roads here,’ and the customer was complaining about how bad the roads are in the city with potholes,” Lloyd said Monday.

“We had a cold winter. I’ve been noticing myself that there’s been a lot of potholes in the pavement.”

He said hitting potholes can do damage to tie rod ends, ball joints and rims as well.

“People have to slow down and make sure you’re not going through those puddles because you don’t know if there is a pothole in them,” Lloyd said.

“If you do see (potholes), slow down. Everyone should slow down now. This time of the year, there’s ice and chunks on the road. Drive slow and watch the road.”

Chris Warren — the City of Regina’s director of roadways and transportation — said during spring, the freeze-thaw activity can take a toll on Regina roads.

“With the spring thaw and melting of snow underway currently, crews are out addressing the potholes of concern and they are being repaired temporarily,” Warren said.

Warren said potholes are repaired on priority roads first, similar to how the city’s snow-clearing program keeps certain roads at the top of the list.

“The road conditions and the age of the infrastructure are one aspect of the potholes,” he said. “Another major factor is the freeze-thaw cycle.

“We get the water that is standing in the streets as the snow melts and then as the vehicles travel over the water, it creates pressure within the structure of the asphalt. Then depending on the age and condition of the asphalt, it does create those potholes.”

The city’s roadways asphalt maintenance budget is around $6 million for 2022. That money is allocated for all asphalt repairs, including potholes.

There have been 169 pothole service requests so far in 2022. Last year in the same time span, there were only 84 requests for service.

Kurtis Doney, Regina’s director of water, waste, and environment, said the city responded to 65 service requests over the weekend when it came to clearing storm drains in the city.

Warren said if a driver hits a pothole that damages their car and they feel the city was negligent, they can submit a service request and have the city’s legal team look at it to determine if the city is liable to reimburse them.

Warren said residents can contact Service Regina or go online to report potholes.