“It’s getting worse and worse”: record number of reports for potholes in Montreal this winter

Montreal experienced its worst winter in five years in terms of potholes, which appear earlier in the year and are increasingly costing motorists.

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“It’s getting worse and worse,” sighs Antoine Hoang, owner of Garage Antoine, on Le Plateau-Mont-Royal, for more than thirty years.

Lately, many of its customers have encountered one of the many craters located on the streets of the metropolis due to the early thaw.

“There are plenty. I hit an old lady’s 2013 Mazda where it hit really hard. It broke the radiator support and hit the transmission,” explains the mechanic.

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In January and February, the City of Montreal’s 311 service received 2,328 reports regarding potholes, more than 900 more than the same period last year.

This is a five-year high, since a record winter in 2019 (see below).

Earlier and more expensive than before

Flat tires, broken suspensions: the numerous holes in the road bring work to the mechanics.

“The difference this year is that it started earlier because we had a winter that looked like spring,” explains Mario Barthold, owner of a garage in Rosemont.

The bill mounts easily. Changing a tire can cost from $70 to $400 and replacing a suspension arm, from $150 to more than $350, according to CAA-Quebec.

“Both for suspension and brakes, we have observed an increase in costs in recent years,” observes Nicolas Ryan, director of public affairs.

“Sometimes the bill rises to $1,500, even $2,000, because there are so many broken things,” reports Antoine Hoang, discouraged.

Lack of maintenance

Freezing and thawing episodes are conducive to the formation of potholes, argues the City of Montreal in an email sent to Newspaper.

It plans to invest $841 million in planing and surfacing over the next ten years.

But much more should be done to catch up on the backlog in road maintenance, according to Alan Carter, professor in the Department of Construction Engineering at the École de Technologie Supérieure (ÉTS).

“What we tend to do for economic reasons is wait until there are enough holes to send a team. But as soon as there is a hole, it should be plugged,” believes the professor specializing in the study of bituminous materials.

Potholes reported to 311

• From 1^er January to February 28, 2024: 2328
• From 1^er January to February 28, 2023: 1412
• From 1^er January to February 28, 2022: 1776
• From 1^er January to February 28, 2021: 507 (COVID-19 pandemic)
• From 1^er January to February 28, 2020: 1788
• From 1^er January to February 28, 2019: 3669

*** Multiple reports may concern the same pothole.

Source: City of Montreal