‘Pothole-patching season’: Lane closures expected on state routes
Published 12:23 pm Saturday, March 1, 2025
Bowling Green Public Works operations maintenance technician Kris Keenan tamps down Aquaphalt cold patch repair to fill a pothole on Hickory Street on Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 25, 2025. GRACE MCDOWELL / DAILY NEWS
(From left) Bowling Green Public Works operations maintenance technicians Charles Gray, Doug Hootes and Kris Keenan spread Aquaphalt cold patch repair to fill a pothole on Hickory Street on Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 25, 2025. GRACE MCDOWELL / DAILY NEWS
Bowling Green Public Works operations maintenance technicians Kris Keenan (left) and Doug Hootes (right) spread buckets of Aquaphalt cold patch repair into a pothole on Hickory Street on Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 25, 2025. GRACE MCDOWELL / DAILY NEWS
Bowling Green Public Works operations maintenance technician Doug Hootes spreads Aquaphalt cold patch repair to fill a pothole on Hickory Street on Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 25, 2025. GRACE MCDOWELL / DAILY NEWS
Bowling Green Public Works operations maintenance technician Doug Hootes spreads Aquaphalt cold patch repair to fill a pothole on Hickory Street on Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 25, 2025. GRACE MCDOWELL / DAILY NEWS
Bowling Green Public Works operations maintenance technicians Charles Gray (right) and Doug Hootes (left) watch on as Kris Keenan (middle) tamp down Aquaphalt cold patch repair to fill a pothole on Hickory Street on Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 25, 2025. GRACE MCDOWELL / DAILY NEWS
BY DAVID MAMARIL HOROWITZ
david.horowitz@bgdailynews.com
Two men in high-visibility vests stand beside a pothole along Hickory Street by Springhill Avenue. Behind them, their truck. Beside them, a bucket of cold mix — for temporary pothole patch-ups in cold weather. They shovel the mix into the pothole, rake it and beat it more with a flat-ended tool called a tamper. In hardly 10 minutes, it’s fixed enough to last three years.
The pothole was one of many sighted in the region following recent inclement weather. When water seeps into holes, it destabilizes a road’s foundation. Freezing causes expansion underground — furthering that destabilization. Traffic, snow plows and salt — which is corrosive — exacerbate the foundation further.
Potholes are a widespread issue on state routes due to recent weather across all counties in Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District 3 — Allen, Barren, Butler, Edmonson, Logan, Metcalfe, Monroe, Simpson, Todd, and Warren, district Spokesperson Wes Watt said.
On Monday, the district warned of lane closures on state roads, which are those signed with numbers such as KY 242, U.S. 31-W and I-65.
It’ll take weeks to months to patch up the vast majority of potholes that have occurred over the past week, Watt said Monday.
Exiting winter and entering spring is what the district calls “pothole-patching season,” Watt said. Agencies such as the city and state use cold mix to temporarily patch up holes; when spring weather arrives, the state will return for full repairs, Watt said.
“We usually have a lot of pothole issues come late February and end of March,” Watt said. “We are doing our best to patch them as fast as we can, and we want (drivers) to be aware of pop-up lane closures that are going to be out while we are doing these repairs.”
Bowling Green Public Works
While emergencies due to roads’ structural integrity can always arise and prompt lane closures, Bowling Green Public Works Director Andy Souza expressed confidence in city roads.
“We have very good roads, and we maintain our roads,” he said. “I’ve always got a team out that fixes potholes.”
The city uses $2 million for maintaining roads annually, which includes fixing potholes as well as maintaining curbs and gutters, Souza said. A million dollars comes from the liquid fuel tax on gas, and another $1 million comes from the General Fund, he said.
Souza also spotlighted the city’s annual lane assessment. Every summer, the agency contracts the engineering, architecture and environmental consulting firm Stantec to assess all city streets and score them up to 100. A city engineer drives out to roads to reaffirm any need for repair.
A score of 70 is the baseline — anything under gets fixed, Souza said.
Agency employees also fix potholes as they see them and welcome reports from the public.
“Anybody that emails or calls, we answer within 24 hours,” Souza said.
Once an accessible asphalt plant opens up — typically, in summer — Public Works secures two types of asphalt: base and overlay, Souza said.
Until then, the agency may need to fill cavities bigger than potholes by using gravel and then placing a plate on top, Souza said. The agency tries to get this done within 30 days, he added.
“We’re constantly doing this dance of: What can I fix to last the longest, to get the best money for taxpayers, to make sure our roads are safe?” he said.
Last year, the department filled 108 potholes — “so, we’re not big enough to have a dedicated pothole team to do that all day long,” Souza said.
A community repair initiative
In Brownsville, Cave City, Horse Cave, Oakland and Park City, the Houchens Industries company Scotty’s Contracting + Stone is inviting residents to identify and vote on their areas’ most troublesome potholes.
The Feb. 27 announcement states that submissions are accepted through March 14. Then, the communities can vote to prioritize repairs.
“We are supporting local municipal crews who work diligently on repairs and through our commitment to our region and community, will enhance these efforts by expediting repairs of the worst pothole offenders,” the company wrote in its announcement.
This campaign invites participation at https://www.scottyscontracting.com/pothole-spot/ , where people can nominate other towns there for 2026 as well. People can report potholes on state roads at 1-800-PATCH-IT and Bowling Green roads at 270-393-3363.
