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"Pothole City": DOT's Pothole Response Time Down By 35%
By
Christopher Robbins
Published May 29, 2011
Modified May 29, 2011
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Gothamist
By
Christopher Robbins
Published May 29, 2011
Modified May 29, 2011
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When we need a scapegoat for all of the city's ills, we pour our collective rage into the one thing we know isn't going anywhere soon: potholes! The Daily News reports that despite the DOT filling 24% more potholes this year than last, they're doing so 35% slower: taking 5.8 days to fix a pothole instead of 4.3, which was the rate this time last year.
After trying to save $1 million by furloughing 555 pot-hole-filling employees earlier this year, the potholes forged from the winter blizzards forced the city to spend $2 million to have the broken streets repaired. Bronx councilman James Vacca is vowing to introduce legislation that will "tighten the 30-day period" the city has to fill a pothole, saying "having what we have now is not really appropriate and is not shedding light on the issue. I want to hold the city's feet to the fire when it comes to pothole repair."
Potholes aren't just bad news for motorists—they're also dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists, who have been injured in pothole-related accidents from hitting one head-on or swerving to avoid them. While we've lived in cities that have a fraction of "Pothole City's" devotion to ridding the streets of the craggy scourge, what other city in the union has it's own dedicated pothole Tumblr?
Tagged
bloomberg
dot
mayor bloomberg
pothole city
potholes
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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