Zohran Mamdani launches second NYC Pothole Blitz — What is it? How to report a pothole in your area?

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Saturday shared the latest update on his pothole-fixing drive along with the Department of Transportation. The NYC Mayor said that on Saturday, 80 members of the transportation department fixed 7,000 potholes across the city.

Zohran Mamdani launched the Pothole Blitz drive after a winter marked by heavy snowfall and prolonged freezing temperatures that left roadways across at least five boroughs in NYC in need of urgent repair.

He launched the drive along with DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn.

In his Instagram post on Saturday, Mamdani shared an update on the NYC pothole repair drive, saying that on 21 March 80 DOT crew fixed 7,000 potholes in the city.

Last weekend, a DOT crew had repaired 7,200 potholes in a single day on 14 March, Mamdani informed. Meanwhile, since 1 January this year, around 66,000 NYC potholes have been repaired, the mayor said.

The Department of Transportation on Friday had also announced the second wave of the pothole repair blitz across five boroughs in New York City.

The 80 DOT crew were dispatched across the five boroughs from 6 am to perform the work.

NYC DOT has repaired more than 66,000 potholes since January 1, with a response time of just over two days, with more than 20,000 potholes filled in the last two weeks alone, the department said.

“New Yorkers deserve safe and smooth streets, and that's why Mayor Mamdani and NYC DOT mobilized last weekend for a pothole blitz, repairing more than 7,200 of them last Saturday—almost as many potholes as we'd fill over an entire week,” said NYC DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn.

The department had also warned of longer travel time and traffic due to the pothole repair blitz.

“While most New Yorkers are still asleep, 80 DOT crews will take to the streets to repair potholes in a five-borough blitz,” NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani said. “In a single day, they'll fill thousands of potholes that pop up every year as spring arrives and our city streets begin to thaw.”

Why are there so many potholes in NYC?

The reason why there is a sudden spike in the number of potholes in NYC is the bitter winter that brought record snowfall and intense cold this season.

Pothole season begins in New York City around the spring, when more potholes form on the city's roadways because of high-moisture, winter weather conditions, and the cycle of freezing and thawing conditions, as per the Department of Transportation.

“What happened this year is we had that real extended cold spell, and what that means is then when it finally warms up and the asphalt thaws out, you see a lot of those potholes all forming kind of at the same time,” Flynn was quoted as saying by CBS.

How to report a pothole?

The Department of Transportation has asked citizens to use the 311 website or app to report a pothole in their area. One can fill out the form at https://a841-dotvweb01.nyc.gov/potholeform/ViewController/CreateComplaint.aspx to report a pothole.

How much time does it require to fix a pothole?

The average repair time for potholes is two days after being reported, according to the authorities. The DOT crew is currently fixing a week's worth of potholes in a single day.