Potholes Crop Up All Over Hudson Valley; How to Report Them

The potholes are back. And this year, they’re especially brutal.

From busy highways like I-84 and I-87 to major routes like Route 9 and Route 211, drivers across the region have been swerving, slowing down, and sometimes hitting craters that feel more like mini-sinkholes than potholes.

After the kind of winter we just had, it’s not really a surprise.

Why Hudson Valley Potholes Are So Bad Right Now

Pothole season usually hits in late winter and early spring, but the problem seems worse this year thanks to several heavy snowstorms and months of plowing across the Hudson Valley.

Snow and ice melt during warmer days and seep into tiny cracks in the pavement. When temperatures drop again overnight, that water freezes and expands. Over time, the pavement weakens and breaks apart.

Add months of plow blades scraping along road surfaces and thousands of cars and trucks driving over weakened pavement, and suddenly those small cracks turn into the potholes drivers are dodging right now.

It’s one of the biggest seasonal headaches for road crews across New York.

There’s Actually A Hotline For Potholes

If you hit a massive pothole on a state highway in the Hudson Valley, there’s actually a direct way to report it.

The New York State Department of Transportation has a hotline where drivers can report dangerous potholes, so repair crews know exactly where the worst problems are.

The number is 1-800-POTHOLE.

Officials say it’s the fastest way to get information to the right crews. While shaming the DOT on social media posts and photos might get attention, it doesn’t always reach the people who actually fix the roads. That's why it's important to follow up that snarky post with a call to the hotline.

Not Every Road Is Covered

There’s one important thing to know before calling.

The hotline only covers potholes on state highways. It does not include roads in New York City, privately owned roads, or those maintained by local governments like cities, towns, villages, or counties.

So if you hit a crater on a local street in Poughkeepsie, Beacon, Newburgh, or Kingston, that report usually needs to go to the local municipality instead. Just Google the contact for your local highway department to contact someone who can get crews to come out and fill the hole.

With potholes scattered across the Hudson Valley and workers out trying to patch them, it's important to be even more vigilant behind the wheel than ever. Losing a tire to a pothole, or even worse, injuring a worker, is not worth the extra 30 seconds you're trying to save beating the next light.