From a deep freeze to spring-like temperatures and rain, the conditions in Northeast Ohio recently have been ideal for a less-than-ideal tradition: pothole season.
“I’m sitting here swerving like this and I’m like, ‘I hope I don’t get pulled over for a DUI.’ I’m not drinking, I’m swerving for potholes,” said Taj Talkington, mimicking the jerk of a steering wheel.
Talkington knows firsthand the damage a pothole can inflict.
“A lot of cracked rims that we have to weld over and over and over. I’m a victim myself, of course,” he said. “When my wife drives my car, she breaks all my rims due to the potholes, especially over on East Exchange and Vernon Odom where they’re the worst at.”
The mechanic at Akron-based Copley Tire and Oil said it’s common to see a surge in customers with broken rims, popped tires or worse when pothole season ramps up.
“Sometimes I replace steering knuckles and wheel bearings, the whole ordeal, the whole nine yards,” Talkington said.
The City of Akron’s Highway Maintenance Division repairs potholes in the city year-round, but crews expect the work to increase this time of year when temperatures fluctuate.