Loading…

TIL my city's pothole app actually works if you take a photo with a quarter next to it | Pothole Patrol - Free To Speak

TIL my city's pothole app actually works if you take a photo with a quarter next to it

So I hit this crater on 5th Street near the old gas station last Wednesday. Bent my rim so bad I had to swap the spare on the side of the road in the rain. I took a photo with a quarter sitting right next to the hole to show the depth. My buddy at the shop told me the city's app just ignores you without a size reference. I filed the claim with that photo and forgot about it. THREE DAYS later a crew came out and patched it. I was SHOCKED. Has anyone else had luck getting the city to respond after sending a picture with a coin or ruler in the shot?

3 comments

3 Comments

river9522mo ago

I used a penny on a pothole near the entrance to the Walmart on Miller Road. Took the photo with the penny right at the edge so you could see the drop was almost 4 inches deep. Filed it through the app on a Tuesday morning and by Friday afternoon they had a crew out there grinding and patching the whole stretch. I think the trick is they need something to measure against so they know it's over their repair threshold. Your quarter method is solid, just make sure the photo is clear and shows the coin at the deepest part.

nguyen.angela2mo ago

Tried the same thing with a ruler after my garbage truck tore up the corner of my driveway. The city came out four days later and repaved the whole thing, even the part that wasn't broken. I'm pretty sure they just like seeing the ruler because it makes their job easier. My neighbor still does the old method of just complaining on Facebook and it never gets fixed.

allen.iris2mo ago

You might want to reconsider that ruler trick. I tried putting a ruler in a pothole on Elm Street last year and the city inspector came out and said it wasn't deep enough to qualify for repair. They actually measured it themselves and said the ruler was angled wrong. Ended up having to wait six more months for a proper fix. Your neighbor's Facebook method might not work for everything, but at least it doesn't give them an excuse to deny your claim.