"Probably the worst it's been in a generation": Potholes plaguing St. Paul roads
ST. PAUL, Minn. – If you've noticed more potholes than normal lately, you're not alone.
For some, it's adding more misery to an already miserable winter season.
"I've been over it since like, December man, honestly," said Trey Brandenburg of St. Paul. "I've needed new shocks just because these potholes are just ruining my suspension. I frequently have to fill my tires, that sort of thing. So yeah, it's just frustrating. I don't wanna have to pay for a new suspension just cause the city doesn't want to take care of its stuff."
Just outside of Brandenburg's home, we spotted cars trying to navigate no less than a dozen potholes of various shapes and sizes.
"When you've got beautiful homes around here like this, I don't know, it's kinda doing the neighborhood a disservice," he said.
Even Minnesota lawmakers are starting to notice the issue. State Rep. Mary Franson tweeted about her experience in St. Paul Wednesday. Franson says she was riding with Rep. Dawn Gillman after dinner when a pothole claimed one of Gillman's tires.
"We spend so much freaking money in the state of Minnesota and to see the streets look like they'd been bombed from other countries is embarrassing," Franson said. "I think there's third world countries that the roads probably look better than West 7th and Grand Avenue."
Officials in cities across Minnesota say they're aware of the issues and they're doing the best they can against Mother Nature.
"This year is probably the worst that it's been in a generation," said Sean Kershaw, St. Paul's director of public works. "That weather, combined with the age of our roads, means that this year is worse than it's been in years."
Kershaw says it doesn't help that this winter has been the wettest winter Minnesota has seen in more than 140 years.
"If you include snow and the rain that we received several times, when we get all that moisture and freeze-thaw, potholes come out. So we're absolutely in a record-setting pothole year." he said. "We know they're bad, we know they're incredibly frustrating for people and we'll have a strategy to address it once we get into April here."
April is when asphalt production will fire up and crews can stop juggling snow plowing and road patching, and instead focus on just repairs. Until then, crews will continue to do what they can.
"From now until April 3, we use what we call cold patch, and that is a temporary solution," Kershaw said. "The frustrating thing is for the plow drivers, they may plow up that cold patch when they're out there the next day."
Kershaw advises drivers to take caution in the meantime, something Franson says she's already been doing.
"You know when I go park my car at the State Office Building, I am driving down the middle of the road because of the potholes that are on the side of the street there," she said. "I mean, I don't even want to travel on some of the roads in the evening because of the fact that you can't see where those potholes are going to pop up at!"
Click here to report a pothole in Minneapolis, and click here to report them in St. Paul.
