Cape city pothole truck to begin filling damaged roads next month

With the last of the cold weather and winter storms now in the past, Cape Girardeau's pothole truck will begin repairing the streets and alleyways damaged by the freeze-thaw cycle.

The city's pothole truck, which was purchased in 2019 for $222,000 using casino revenue, operates from April to September, when temperatures are high enough for the truck to emulsify oil and rock through a heating process. Cape Girardeau Public Works does not receive the supply of oil from St. Louis or New Madrid, Missouri, until late March or early April, also because of the temperature reasons, according to Scott Griffith, Public Works traffic operations manager.

"Temperatures have a big hand in what the oil companies do with the stuff," Griffith said. "You can start running it through those lines and the lines that don't get heated, or are too cold, will get stopped up. So, you have to let the temperatures get up for everything to run smoothly."

When the city pothole truck is not able to be used during colder months, members of the Public Works team fill holes with a temporary cold patch consisting of a tar mixture. The temporary patch reduces the amount of liquid that can drain into the pothole and under the pavement causing the hole to become larger and more likely to cause damage to vehicles driving over it.

Potholes are caused by the expansion and contraction of water that has penetrated the asphalt through weakened areas or cracks. It gradually erodes the pavement and the asphalt falls into the eroded portions and the tires of vehicles cause more damage.

According to a previous story from the Southeast Missourian, Stan Polivick, director of the Public Works, said an estimated 3,500 man-hours are devoted annually to street repair. Cape Girardeau's capital improvement sales tax provides $500,000 annually dedicated to street repair.

"There's always potholes out there," Griffith said. "We just try to go throughout the city and fill all of them that we get a chance to, especially when we get a complaint. We try to go out there immediately or very quick to fix it. We usually get to it the same day the pothole is reported, and try to get there before it causes damage to somebody's vehicle."

To report a pothole to Cape Girardeau Public Works, call (573) 339-6351 or visit www.cityofcapegirardeau.org.