(COLORADO SPRINGS) — El Paso County is laying out its plan for how it will try to keep our roads free of potholes this year. The county said the 2025 Asphalt Paving and Preservation program will extend the life of paved roads in the region.
The county plans to do this through a focus on strategic preservation. They said every one dollar spent on preservation saves six to 10 dollars on more expensive rehabilitation or reconstruction in the future.
“It is a challenging time of the year for our pavement,” said Tim Stickel, Highway Division Manager for El Paso County Public Works.
TRIP, a National Transportation Research Nonprofit report found that drivers in Colorado Springs lose more than $2,600 each year driving on roads that are rough, damaged, or unsafe, and more than 11 billion state-wide.
“The weather has a big impact on the potholes. That freeze-thaw cycle does heck on our roads, it does a big job of breaking up that pavement after a while, as we get that infiltration,” said Sickel.
But the 2025 program is looking to change that. The Department of Public Works is utilizing advanced technologies like 3D profiling and ground radar to analyze actual road conditions. They say weather is the biggest cause of damaged roads for our region, with temperatures going from freezing to hot in short periods of time.
“Once water infiltrates into those cracks and crevices around your hard surfaces, then it freezes. So it lifts it, and then as it thaws, it goes back down. That movement starts causing those cracks and that breakage. Then eventually you’ll get enough of them that it’ll start flaking off and creating a full sized pothole,” said Sickel.
To make a report about any street damage click here.
El Paso County Commissioners said early intervention with preservation repairs maximizes the lifespan of a road by preventing small cracks or issues from becoming large potholes.
“I strongly recommend reporting it and take pictures, especially like I said, we look through those and we find the ones that might be worse and try to focus on those because our biggest priority is making the roads safe,” said Robert Ripley, Highway Supervisor for El Paso County Public Works.
To avoid hitting potholes try to leave extra space between the car in front of you so you have time to see it and react.
