Report a Pothole

Please call 613-546-0000 or contact us to report the location of a pothole on city streets. To report a pothole on the 401, along Bath Road between Collins Bay and Coronation or Highway 15 north of the 401 to the City boundary line please call the Ministry of Transportation at 613-544-2220.

Report a pothole

This provides Public Works staff the opportunity to investigate areas of most concern and to assign limited resources efficiently.

Pothole Claims

Pothole claims do occur, the City’s obligation to fix a pothole is triggered only after we become aware of the problem.

When a pothole claim is received we will review to determine whether the service level standards were met.

How potholes are formed

Canadian winters create potholes. When temperatures rise, water from thawed snow seeps into small cracks on roads and then expands when it freezes again causing cracks to grow. The more often we experience this freeze/thaw cycle, the more potholes form.

Potholes can also form as the road surface warms in the spring and the frost is driven deeper in the ground. The road base does not thaw evenly which can result in soft or saturated spots under the asphalt surface, and more potholes.

The video below explains this process:

When not addressing winter plowing and salting/sanding needs, the City's Public Works staff use "cold patch" to try to maintain potholes until more permanent repairs can be carried out.

Other road maintenance tasks

In addition to potholes we maintain and repair a number of different types of road issues. Visit our road maintenance page to learn more about how we repair roads.