Pothole problems plague Central Coast

A viewer contacted KION with concerns about potholes around the Central Coast. KION spoke to a Caltrans maintenance crew to learn more about the ongoing struggle with the road hazards.

We met up with Caltrans maintenance worker Sam Moreno on a stretch of Highway 101 in Soledad, an area already in the midst of a major construction project. Moreno said filling potholes can be a never-ending task. It’s a year-round problem on our decades-old roadways, sometimes driven by rainy weather.

“If we don’t crack seal in time, water will get underneath the pavement and will push out,” Moreno explained. “The water will work its way out underneath and it’ll start popping it out and that’s only because of the volume of the traffic and the bigger trucks that are coming.”

If sealing the crack doesn’t work, that popped-up pavement becomes a pothole, which crews try to patch. However, Caltrans knows our roads are riddled with them.

“One of the things Caltrans is working on is the pothole situation that we got going on because it’s a safety issue for everybody,” Moreno said.

The owner of Tire and Wheel World in Salinas showed us one instance where a driver hit a pothole hard enough to bend the rim and wreck the tire. But that’s not the only problem. Mechanics said it can ruin front-end suspension or knock out a car’s alignment.

They recommend keeping an eye out for potholes, but that’s not the only thing they should watch out for.

“Pull to the side if it’s safe,” Moreno said. “A courtesy to our families and everyone that works at Caltrans.”

If there are potholes on Caltrans roads that drivers are concerned about, they can report them here.