MALDEN — Call this winter season a healthy dose of weather-related “Chutes and Ladders,” with full weeks of Arctic temperatures teetering on zero degrees and below, coupled with balmy days in the 50s.
It has also brought snowfall, followed by some bouts of torrential, spring-like downpours.
This full buffet of weather extremes, along with keeping people guessing, wreaks havoc on all of the city’s roads. The mix of snow, rain and temperature highs and lows are also the perfect recipe for the bane of winter drivers: Potholes.
This has been an especially tough winter in Malden and every other city in the region since “Pothole Season” has definitely come early, with dozens of these road hazards appearing on virtually every street in the city.
Malden Department of Public Works (DPW) Director Bob Knox calls it “freeze-and-thaw.”
“This has been a really challenging winter season since we were not even out of December and we had some record-setting cold temperatures one week and then very warm temperatures the next week,” Knox said. “The asphalt freezes, then thaws and cracks and comes apart when tires pound on it.”
There have been three “plowable” snowstorms thus far this winter season, along with a number of other occasions where sand and salt have been spread on icy roads by city trucks and other apparatuses.
Throw in some drenching rainstorms and city DPWs are really up against it.
Malden is ahead of the curve over some other communities since it employs the “See-Click-Fix” website where residents can immediately notify the city when they spot something out of order and having to be addressed, Knox said.
“It’s been extremely busy with the pothole season coming early,” Knox agreed, noting the See-Click-Fix notification has already produced more than 150 requests for pothole repairs. “There are many more out there, too,” Knox said. “Obviously, we address those situations which are the most hazardous to drivers.”
Knox said that ideally, it would be a short winter and early spring with decent weather so the crews could really get to work filling and repairing potholes. “A lot of what we are doing now is a temporary solutions. We have a month and a half of winter left on the calendar. Hopefully we get a break.”
As for now, Knox said residents are encouraged to go to seeclickfix.com, navigate to Malden and report potholes or any other winter-related issues.
“We go over every entry and we try and address it as soon as possible,” Knox said, noting that his crews have used almost 30 tons of asphalt mix already this winter to fill potholes. “Malden is in the same boat as a lot of other communities and we are all trying to get supplies of repair asphalt at the same time. It’s a challenge, but we’ll keep fighting.”
