How Do Potholes Form?

Why are there more potholes during the winter, especially with a mix of cold weather and heavy rain? Here we explain why this happens.

[malcolmtyrrell]

As a civil engineer, with some experience of road construction I know the importance of preventng water ingress into the road. Water will get into the road if the surface is not kept sealed, by applying a surface dressing or a new tarmac top layer. The lack of timely 'surface sealing' is the cause of water ingress, and the inevitable potholes. A road surface that shows a 'crazed cracking pattern of wet lines' when the surface is, ostensibly, dry but the water in the micro-cracks has not dried out yet, is a sure sign that the surface is in need of 'a coat of paint'. The video is correct, but the fundamental issue is the lack of prior maintenance. Money shortage

[anthonyskipper]

Other countries in Europe have similar or worse weather conditions, yet when I drive across Europe the roads are virtually pothole-free. Where they have been filled, they seem to do a better job in sealing the edges, where the rain and frost seep in.

[KevinLudbrook]

This is absolutely trivial nonsense and a waste of time/money, It shows just part of the mechanisms that causes pot holes. The weather has not changed significantly in recent years. The video does not cover the appalling quality of repairs and the lack of preventative maintenance in such areas as joins between laid strips that are left degrading for years. I can point to hundreds of examples locally in Tandridge. And it seems that repair techniques have not changed in a hundred years. Many replacement surfaces are not properly bonded to the underlying layer, drains are not maintained, there are so many things that are just poorly done leading to future costly work. Please let me know if this is not the case.