(WASHINGTON, DC) — Mayor Vincent C. Gray and District Department of Transportation (DDOT) Director Terry Bellamy today launched the District’s fourth annual Potholepalooza campaign to aggressively repair damaged roadways across the city. The Mayor and Director Bellamy helped fill potholes on Lowell Street in Northwest Washington as DDOT crews mobilized for the month-long campaign.

“Even after a mild winter, there are always potholes to fill, and this is an opportunity for us to make needed repairs and to ensure our streets are in good shape,” Mayor Gray said. “Potholepalooza is truly a ‘One City’ campaign, where all district residents are encouraged to participate and partner with us to make sure our streets are in good shape for the spring and summer.”

This year’s campaign will run through May 17. As part of the campaign, DDOT is adding extra crews to fill potholes and will aim to repair identified locations within 48 hours (normal response time for filling potholes is within 72 hours). During Potholepalooza, residents and commuters are encouraged to phone, go online, tweet, e-mail or use the new DC311 smartphone app to submit requests for pothole repairs. This year, residents can also go online to track the repairs on a map – a new feature added for this year’s campaign.

“Potholepalooza has become a spring tradition in the District and it is a great opportunity to highlight the work of our Street and Bridge Maintenance crews,” said DDOT Director Terry Bellamy. “They’re out here year round – either plowing snow or filling potholes – and it’s because of their efforts that this program is such a success.”

The first-ever Potholepalooza was held in 2009, and over the past 3 campaigns DDOT crews have filled 18,975 potholes. Last year DDOT received 1,317 service requests for pothole repairs during the month-long campaign and filled 5,201 potholes.

How to Report a Pothole

Residents and Commuters can notify DDOT in a variety of ways:

1. Call the Mayor’s Call Center at 311,
2. Use the On-line Service Request Center at 311.dc.gov,
3. Tweet to twitter.com/DDOTDC ,
4. Email to potholepalooza@dc.gov, or
5. Use the District’s new DC311 smartphone application.

Callers should identify the precise location including the correct quadrant (Northwest, Northeast, Southeast or Southwest) in the city and provide as much detail as possible about the hazard, including the approximate size and depth of the pothole. DDOT crews will also be out and about proactively identifying potholes.

How is a pothole repaired?

Road crews fix a pothole by filling it with replacement pavement material. Cold patches are used for small potholes in lightly trafficked areas because they can be quickly applied. Hot asphalt is used in high-traffic areas or on large potholes, because it will hold together much more effectively. If the road has become pitted with potholes, it may need to be resurfaced. Resurfacing a roadway involves stripping the upper layers of asphalt off, roughening the bottom layers, and applying a new upper roadway surface.

Daily Updates

DDOT will be posting numbers and overall totals of potholes filled. This information will be updated daily and can be found at ddot.dc.gov/potholes.