Montreal

Montreal rushes to fill thousands of potholes before holidays

Sixteen specialized machines will hit city streets to fill 25,000 potholes, in addition to the emergency patching already done by individual boroughs.

Citizens encouraged to report problem potholes to the city

The city of Montreal is hoping to fill thousands of such potholes before the holiday season. (Kim McNairn/CBC)

The city of Montreal plans to fill 25,000 potholes before the holiday season.

The operation will target potholes that developed since last spring, as well as any that developed in recent days due to unusual November weather that saw heavy snowfall and freezing rain.

Sixteen specialized machines will hit city streets for the task, in addition to the emergency patching already done by the individual boroughs.

In a statement, the city cautioned the repairs can only be done when it is not too cold and when the road is dry, so there may be days when the weather prevents the machines from being used.

The work will take place both day and night in an effort to avoid traffic complications.

Residents are asked to use 311 or the Montreal Resident Services app to report potholes to facilitate the blitz.

Nearly 200,000 potholes are filled in the city every year.