BE AWARE: It’s that time of year…potholes and road construction!
Freezing, thawing, and traffic are the top ingredients of pothole hazards including property damage and collisions caused by pothole avoidance or loss of vehicular control after hitting a pothole. For those in central Indiana, March is primetime for Hoosier delight (college basketball) and Hoosier roadway horror (potholes and the resultant carnage). As of this date, there are currently 3,184 reported potholes in Indianapolis awaiting repair. Currently reported potholes and the status of repair may be viewed here.
Never fear, the Department of Public Works is on the job. As reported by IndyStar, crews are currently working in 12-hour shifts to fill potholes with hot asphalt which is only possible once the weather warms. In addition to filling holes, the City also uses a process called strip-patching where an entire layer of asphalt across a whole lane is removed and replaced with new asphalt. The City has already repaired in excess of 66,000 potholes this year—go team!
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While pothole elimination decreases roadway hazards, whether crews are filling potholes or strip-patching, construction teams will be on the roadway. Though the work is very much appreciated, the presence of crews, machinery, and equipment in the road creates different hazards for Indiana motorists. Due to the nature of the work, there are not likely to be many advance warnings that pothole repair is occurring ahead. As a result, drivers are often confronted with rapid slowdowns in traffic with little warning leading to rear-end collisions or collisions caused by drivers quickly changing lanes.
If you are injured as a result of another driver’s failure to appreciate the risks posed by potholes or the presence of repair crews, call our personal injury attorney at Keller & Keller to find out if you may be entitled to compensation.
