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The season of pothole problems

Drivers say the season of rips in the road came early this year.

LUZERNE COUNTY, Pa. — Drive anywhere in northeastern or central Pennsylvania right now, and you're likely to run into a pothole.

Drivers in Luzerne County tell Newswatch 16 it's beyond frustrating.

"I got to swerve all over the place just to make sure my car's not going to get ruined by these potholes. And who's going to pay for it? I got to pay for it if my car gets ruined," Joseph Digangi complained.

Others say it's something they're used to dealing with.

"They're ridiculous, messing up all the vehicles, ridiculous. Something's got to be done."

Depending on the pothole you're talking about, it's the responsibility of either the municipality, the county, or the state to take care of it.

Newswatch 16 found Luzerne County crews out in Jackson Township patching potholes and doing some preventative work until a permanent fix can come in warmer weather.

"It's very early in the year. I mean, to see this amount of potholes, usually, we go into like March and April, or you have the changeover to warmer weather coming. This is because of all of the rain we had. And then all of the ice on top of it and all the salt is a combination of the above," said Wayne Mitchell, Luzerne County's road and bridge supervisor.

Members with the Luzerne County Road and Bridge Department say they have plenty of supplies to do the patchwork. The roadblocks they run into responding to pothole complaints are weather conditions and staff shortages, so they ask for patience if your concern is on a county road.

Operations officials in Luzerne County tell Newswatch 16 they hope to set up a pothole hotline soon, similar to PennDOT's for state roads, to help with response time.

These guys say one storm can make a big impact, so the road you drove on last week might look a little different the next, so it's best to take it slow, especially if you see crews out there working.

Check out WNEP’s YouTube page.   

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