How to report and avoid Tulsa’s potholes as crews begin repairs

Tulsa city street crews are switching gears from tackling slick streets to filling the gaping potholes left behind.

Tim McCorkell, City of Tulsa Street Maintenance Manager, shares what you should know about the repairs:

Q: Now that we’ve warmed up, what are street maintenance crews focused on right now?

A: We're focusing on mainly the potholes in the city, plus we must get our equipment cleaned up from the salt. So, we have a few people focusing on the equipment, getting the salt off so it doesn’t corrode. And then we have crews that are out running all the areas for potholes, addressing complaints that have come in. Our main concern is any damaging pothole. So that's what get it gets addressed first. So we usually like to tell the public we know there's potholes out there, but if there's a damaging one, please call those in so we can get those addressed right away. The smaller ones will get addressed with our routine maintenance.

Q: Why do potholes get worse after we get winter weather?

A: One of the main issues we have is from a storm like we just had, it was really cold, so it's the freeze-thaw cycle that really affects the roads. When we get that moisture down in a pothole area or crack in the roadway, and it freezes the water expands and it'll pop some of the roadway out. So, freezing and thawing is what causes it. It was bad this time. So, we anticipate we're going to have several potholes to contend with.

Q: How long does it take you to fill potholes? How many are crew members working on?

A: Well, the complaints are still coming in right now, but so far, I mean, what we have, we'll have a lot of it addressed this week, because we'll run anywhere from four to eight crews every day, plus our injection patcher, which is a one-man truck that can fill potholes. So, it's kind of hard to say currently. We don't really have a number on how many are out there, but we know there's going to be several little ones, and so we'll probably be working some overtime to get them addressed and getting caught up.

Q: How do I report a damaging pothole?

A: We have a 311 that they can call and report it through that or the mayor's Action Center, either one. There's also an app, if they have it on their phone. When they see one, they can report it, document that specific location. We don't need just a general area, you know, Memorial to Sheraton or something like that. We need a specific location that way we can get to it quickly and get it addressed without having to be looking for the pothole.

Q: What should drivers do if they see crews filling potholes?

A: Just give them some room to work and slow down. I mean, that speed limit may be 40 miles an hour on that road they're working on, but I mean, they're out there in the traffic, and you never know. Every once a while, a shovel handle, a rake may come out from between the trucks. So, just slow down when you encounter them, and don't pull between the trucks, because we usually try to work between the trucks. Have a lead truck, and then the truck in the back, and the employees work between them for safety. So, we've had some cars that'll try and dodge in between. And there's people in there working. So just be really careful and slow down when you're around the vehicles.

City of Tulsa | Reporting a Pothole