Pothole Season Strikes Early In Boston Area

BOSTON (CBS) - Usually it takes a thaw to start bringing out the potholes, but they're popping up now and everywhere. Plenty of drivers have fallen victim to the road hazards and it's costly.

Charity Coleman has two flat passenger side tires after hitting a pothole she says she never saw in Brookline. "I heard the pop very loud. If you run over one you definitely get a flat," she said.

Craters in the road are like a magnet for wheels. Alex Aferiat's flat tire is setting him back $200, driving over a pothole in Boston's South End. "Once I was half way up the block the steering wheel started drifting to the left then the thump, thump, thump."

Wherever you go, there they are, the unmistakable sound of the road. Creonte Autobody in Waltham is proof of the problem, stacking up ripped up tires and dented rims. They can't keep up with the demand for repairs. "It can be thousands of dollars in damage," said Bill Creonte, who says he doesn't usually see so much damage from potholes until the spring thaw.

Add it to the list of problems for communities dealing with the hazards of this winter. "It feels like a video game swerving around the streets," said Aferiat.