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CHARLOTTE, NC – “It just needs to be fixed,” says Matthews resident Chris Eason.
Sunday, Eason ended up stranded after hitting a pothole on Independence Boulevard.
“Blew out my tire. My brother had to walk a mile to the nearest store to get new tires, so now I gotta replace that. It’s ridiculous,” he says.
Winter weather is taking it’s toll on Charlotte’s roads.
Drivers say they’ve already noticed more potholes they have to dodge.
“I hit this pothole and the whole car, I could hear the bottom of my car scrape against the concrete, and it just makes me cringe!” says Matthews resident Jordan Coco.
Coco says the most frustrating part is shelling out money to replace or re-align tires.
“Even if it’s just your tire, that’s not cheap at all,” he says.
Drivers annoyed by potholes will have to wait to see a fix though.
Unless a pothole poses an imminent danger – city and state DOT crews typically wait until Spring.
Charlotte DOT officials say it takes near-perfect conditions to make a repair that will last.
Some drivers say waiting too long puts them in danger.
“Usually you don’t see them until you’re right up on them. I’ve had tires blown out myself for that very reason,” says Jacksonville, NC resident John Shelby.
Shelby says he’d rather go ahead and see repairs now – even though they might not last.
“You have a blow out, you end up running into somebody, take a chance of killing someone,” he says.
