With snow and ice now gone from roadways, drivers across the tri-state are confronting a new hazard on streets: pothole season.
From damaged tires to bent suspensions, repair and tire shops say they are struggling to keep up with the surge in business as warmer temperatures give way to another expected freeze — worsening the freeze-thaw cycle that cracks and craters pavement.
In Hackensack, drivers along Water Street are slowing to a crawl to avoid deep potholes that have formed along the roadway.
“I wish they would remedy the problem yesterday. It needs help,” said Jeffrey Silverman, a Hackensack resident concerned about driving his sports car through the area. “It’s pretty bad, potholes are six or nine inches deep in some spots.”
Even as temperatures climb temporarily, forecasters expect them to dip below freezing again within the week. The repeated expansion and contraction of moisture beneath the pavement caused by the fluctuating temperatures is a leading cause of potholes and can leave drivers facing hundreds of dollars in repairs.
At Hackensack Auto Spring and Alignment, owner Bryan Zillitto said the damage he’s seeing goes beyond flat tires.
“One tire is pointing to the left, the other to the right because they’ve bent their suspension. That’s what we are here for, to fix all that,” Zillitto said.
So who pays for the damage caused by potholes? It’s almost never the state.
Drivers who hit potholes on public roads may attempt to file claims with the appropriate government entity — whether a municipality, county or the state — depending on who maintains the roadway. But reimbursement is far from guaranteed.
New Jersey offers online claim forms for property damage, but the state cautions that in order for a driver to get paid, there must have been prior notice of the pothole and and sufficient time provided to repair it.
“If you do not meet this stringent requirement…your claim will be denied,” the New Jersey Treasury Department website says. “Historically, for matters such as potholes and similar road hazard property damage claims, the State has paid less than 1% of all claims made.”
That’s right: Of all the claims filed with New Jersey, more than 99% get denied to be paid, according to the state’s data. All the others get paid for by drivers or their insurance.
In the meantime, drivers can only do what they can to dodge the potholes out there, and report any new ones encountered. Many towns and counties across New Jersey have reporting lines and online forms to report potholes.
In Hackensack, body shops said the city has been working to fill potholes and that conditions have improved for now in some areas. But with more freezes in the forecast following the warm weather, drivers may soon be navigating a fresh round of road damage.
This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC New York. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC New York journalist edited the article for publication.