Potholes after last week’s rain gave a Rotorua wheel repairman a record week, while a mum says she is “constantly dodging” them on her commute and had to shell out hundreds of dollars on repairs after hitting one on Te Ngae Rd.
The comments come after 33 complaints were made to Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency about potholes in the Bay of Plenty over 10 days - all requesting compensation for vehicle damage.
Managing director of Scorpro Engineering, Eric King, told the Rotorua Daily Post he repaired 50-60 wheels last week - many of which had been damaged by potholes.
The Rotorua-based engineer said he had “never been so busy”. Before this, the most wheels he had fixed in a week was about 30.
“They just kept on coming in, I couldn’t get them done quick enough.”
King said he believed some potholes in the region were being “left for days” and deteriorating “very rapidly” after being repaired.
In his view: “If the roading authorities did a decent job of the bloody roads, I would be unemployed - and I wouldn’t mind that because I am 76.”
People should avoid buying “low profile wheels” and maintain a good following distance to reduce the risk of pothole damage.
“The chance of you getting a damaged wheel increases by about 50 per cent.”
Sylvia Warmerdam, who lives on Tauranga Direct Rd, regularly drives 27 kilometres to and from her work at Red Stag in Whakarewarewa.
She commuted with her 2-year-old daughter Wren, who had taken to yelling out “pothole” whenever one appeared.
“I am constantly dodging potholes, so much so that my toddler now knows where they are on the roads and shouts at me to avoid them,” she said.
Last Tuesday night was particularly rough for the pair who got caught up in “horrendous” rain. They could not take their usual route home as the Mangapouri Bridge was closed.
Warmerdam ended up driving back through town and along Te Ngae Rd/State Highway 30 towards Te Puke.
Driving past the Te Ngae Fresh Choice about 6.30pm, she hit a “massive pothole” and her tyre deflated immediately, she said.
“Because I don’t know that road, I don’t know where the potholes are - I just hit it.”
A friend living nearby came to help and the pair flagged down a “kind man” who changed her tyre at a nearby petrol station.
She could not claim insurance as her excess was about $500, and ended up paying $365 for a new tyre and repairs to a bent rim.
She has lodged a claim with Waka Kotahi and was waiting to hear back if it could help cover costs.
“Otherwise it’s just $365 I’ll have to swallow.”
Warmerdam said she dodged multiple potholes driving to and from work - on the corner after Kaharoa Rd and Hamurana Rd near the Awahou Stream and another just a kilometre from her house.
One near her home on Tauranga Direct Rd was 50cm wide and about 30cm deep - and she often had to drive “a little over” the centre line to avoid it.
“Some of the potholes are just crazy.”
In her view, drivers should not have to think about “dodging potholes” while on the road.
“My car has hit most of these potholes on many occasions - with massive thuds - as avoiding them is too dangerous with oncoming traffic or cyclists on the inside lane ... it gets tedious navigating the roads like this.”
Rotorua resident Utkarsh Sheth was driving through Okere Falls on Wednesday morning when he hit a pothole - bending the rim of the front wheel on his Nissan Tiida. It cost him $120 to replace the wheel, he said.
Three other drivers contacted the Rotorua Daily Post about potholes in the region causing damage to their vehicles over the past week.
This included “badly” buckled mags, a blown tyre and a “ruined” steering rack.
Another woman said over the past three months she has had to buy three new tyres after driving through potholes - costing her $660 total.
One pothole was located on the corner of Rusell and Fairy Springs Rd, and the other two were on State Highway 5.
Waka Kotahi received 28 complaints about potholes in the Eastern Bay of Plenty and five in the Western Bay of Plenty between May 8 and 17.
This compared to 10 complaints for the whole of April.
Waikato system manager Roger Brady told the Rotorua Daily Post all the complainants requested compensation.
Brady said drivers were expected to insure their vehicles and insurers should be their “first point of contact” when damage occurred.
Waka Kotahi assessed damage complaints on a “case-by-case basis”, he said.
“Waka Kotahi and our contractors investigate to see if there are any exceptional circumstances we should be aware of, which may trigger further actions by Waka Kotahi or our contractor.”
He said contractors could only repair potholes they knew about and encouraged the public to report potholes by calling 0800 4 HIGHWAYS.
Drivers should drive to the conditions, slow down and maintain safe following distances to “maximise their chance of seeing and responding to a pothole in the road”.
Regional manager of maintenance and operations Rob Campbell said water was the “main contributing factor creating potholes” and heavy rain last week formed new potholes in the Bay of Plenty.
Eastern trouble spots included SH5, SH30 Tikitere, SH36 Ngongotahā, SH34 Kawerau and SH2 Matatā, he said.
In the Western Bay, SH2 Te Puna, SH29 Lower Kaimai, SH29a Maungatapu, SH2 Hewletts Rd and around Mount Maunganui had pothole problems.
Rotorua Lakes Council infrastructure and environmental solutions deputy chief executive Stavros Michael said road controlling authorities and contractors repaired pothole damage on an ongoing basis as part of road maintenance.
After last week’s rain, however, contractors were “forced to focus on” clearing storm debris and underslips, scouring and various drainage issues - along with potholes.
“The Rotorua network comprises about 20 million square metres of sealed surfaces on 1000km of road and the number of defects like potholes cover a very small fraction of that,” he said.
Work was prioritised based on risk and contractors could not “get to everything at once”, he said.
Michael said after stormy weather, drivers should “take extra care” on the roads and be aware of the prevailing conditions.
He said the council would only consider compensation claims for vehicle damage by potholes “if it is proven that it was negligent and did not take reasonably practical steps to fix known road defects”.
He urged motorists who noticed damage on urban or rural roads to contact the council on 07 348 4199.
Local Democracy Reporting obtained the decision through the court.