Pothole damage up nearly 50 per cent in Montreal: CAA

If Montrealers feel this year’s pothole season is more brutal than usual, the CAA-Quebec says the numbers back them up.

The automobile association says roadside assistance calls for blown tires rose nearly 28 per cent across Quebec in January and February compared to last year — but in Montreal, that figure jumps to nearly 50 per cent.

“It’s almost 4,000 people that we had to help this year for blown tires alone, and it’s not even pothole season,” said CAA spokesperson Nicolas Ryan. " And when spring comes around, we’re expecting, unfortunately, much more blown tires.”

Engineers blame a freeze-thaw cycle in January for the heavy damage to Quebec roads this winter.

READ MORE: Montreal’s pothole problems have solutions — but city lacks money

Quebecers pay the price

Ryan notes that at roughly $200 a tire, most drivers don’t bother filing an insurance claim because deductibles and the subsequent rate increases rarely make it worthwhile.CAA say such figures across Canada confirm Quebecers spend more than anyone else in the country on car repairs due to bad roads.

“The average in (road-related repairs) in Canada was $126 per car per year. But when you look at that number for Quebec, that number was $258. So twice the average of what it cost elsewhere in Canada. And unfortunately, we can say that it’s in Quebec that we have the worst roads,” said Ryan.

READ MORE: Potholes in Montreal are ‘catastrophic,’ says mayor

The CAA criticized the city and province’s approach to road maintenance, arguing that annual patchwork repairs are both insufficient and misguided.

“We’re putting a plaster on an open fracture,” Ryan said. “Whenever you have a road that’s breaking every year, the fact is that road is dead under it.”

The consequences of years of underinvestment are now reflected in Quebec’s infrastructure deficit, which the CAA pegs at $22.5 billion — the amount needed just to bring the province’s roads to a safe, functional standard.

“Not even a nice state,” Ryan said. “Just enough for people to be safe to roll on.”