PEI

'This is not a normal year': Pesky potholes on the rise in Charlottetown

With the freeze and thaw that's happened this winter and spring, officials with the city's public works department say this year "is a little worse" when it comes to the number of potholes around the capital.

'We’ve had a little more than normal this year, that’s for sure'

Some of the repairs will hold through the spring but some won't, which means crews will have to revisit the problem spots. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)

Driving around Charlottetown, you may have noticed that you're bouncing around in your seat a little more lately.

With the freeze and thaw that's happened this winter and spring, officials with the city's public works department say this year "is a little worse" when it comes to the number of potholes around the capital.

'The boys are great, they just keep going back — it's kind of a cat-and-mouse game but we're at it and we're staying on top of things,' Joe MacKinnon told CBC's Jay Scotland. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)

"This is not a normal year, we've had a lot of thaw and freeze, and thaw and freeze, which creates not-ideal conditions for us," Joe MacKinnon, Charlottetown's assistant manager of public works, told CBC's Jay Scotland Monday.

'Cat and mouse game'

MacKinnon said it is hard to say exactly how many potholes public works has encountered so far — but he said it's definitely more than in previous years.

There's been a few potholes 'that keep rearing their heads,' Joe MacKinnon says. (Shane Hennessey/CBC)

"We've had a little more than normal this year, that's for sure," he said. "I would only be estimating but I would have to think it's up in the high hundreds to 1,000 for sure."

City crews are out every day patching holes with hot asphalt. Some of the holes will hold through the spring but some won't, which means public works will have to revisit the ones that deteriorate.

"There's been a few that keep rearing their heads — Queen Street and a couple other spots," MacKinnon said.

"But the boys are great, they just keep going back — it's kind of a cat-and-mouse game, but we're at it and we're staying on top of things."

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With files from Jay Scotland