City of Kamloops solicits pothole complaints

Mar 13, 2018 | 2:45 PM

KAMLOOPS — The City of Kamloops wants to hear your complaints — about potholes.

Civic Operations Director Jen Fretz says city crews are scrambling 24 hours a day to repair crumbling roads all across Kamloops, but need to know where the problem spots are in order to give them attention.

Fretz told council Tuesday the public has been quite responsive so far, but the city needs to hear even more.

“We are, right now, at a larger number of requests for service or phonecalls from the public than we normally are,” said Fretz. “Some of that is good news, in that I think people are phoning us and getting in contact with us when they do see potholes which is what we want. But certainly, it also speaks to the extent to which our roadways are, in some cases, failing.”

With the winter’s massive snowpack finally melting away, many streets are wet all day long, and Fretz says that hampers efforts to patch the holes.

“Some of the repairs that we’re seeing are only lasting about 12 hours. Some of that is due to the wetness out there. Obviously, there’s lots of snow melt. It’s supposed to rain tomorrow, which isn’t going to help things. It’s obviously very difficult to have asphalt adhere to asphalt when it’s in a puddle,” said Fretz.

To report a pothole, residents are encouraged to call the city at (250) 828-3461, use the online reporting tool at the City of Kamloops website or use the MyKamloops mobile app.