Colton blasts DOT over 86th Street pothole repair

The city’s Department of Transportation did such a sloppy job of repairing a pothole on busy 86^th Street in Bensonhurst that the roadway is now doubly dangerous for pedestrians, according to one local politician.

DOT came in to repair a “crater-sized” pothole at the intersection of 86^th Street and Bay Parkway, said Assemblymember William Colton, contending that the agency made an awkward attempt to fill in the pothole that resulted in way too much blacktop and created a small mountain in the crosswalk.

“They over-filled it,” Colton told the Home Reporter.

Now, pedestrians have to be extra-careful when crossing the street, he said, describing the filled-in pothole as “a dangerous mound” in the crosswalk.

“It creates a dangerous situation for pedestrians. People could trip and fall. One senior citizen told me he has to be really careful when he crosses the street with his walker. He has to watch where he plants the walker as he takes his steps. That intersection is one of the busiest in our neighborhood. You have seniors and mothers with baby carriages crossing the street,” said Colton, a Democrat representing parts of Bensonhurst and Gravesend.

Bay Parkway and 86^th Street are both heavily-trafficked roadways with a great deal of vehicular traffic. The B1 bus runs along 86^th Street and there is a bus stop at the corner. In addition, the elevated track of the D train looms overhead.

The pothole repair job won’t last, Colton predicted. “Cars will drive over it and eventually flatten the mound. Then, the pothole will reappear,” he said.

Colton also charged that while DOT filled in the pothole, repair crews ignored other large cracks in the roadway, leaving the crevices in place. “It was a complete waste of taxpayer money,” he said of the repair job.

Colton is calling on DOT to come back and repair the entire intersection “before things get out of hand and somebody falls and gets seriously hurt.”

DOT is going to do just that, an agency spokesperson said.

The pothole repair at the intersection of 86^th Street and Bay Parkway was meant to be a temporary measure, according to the DOT spokesperson, who said the agency is planning to pay a return visit to the location.

“DOT made temporary pothole repairs to address the conditions at this location. The intersection is included in an upcoming capital project, which will make permanent fixes to the roadway and improve bus stop accessibility,” the spokesperson told the Home Reporter in an email.