CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Workers off Hopkins and Vermont Roads said their streets have been neglected for years and the potholes are only getting worse.
Zach Smith, who works off Hopkins and Vermont Roads, said he called the city multiple times and asked them to fix the roads, but there was no response.
"Several cars gone through, bent rims. One of our employees hit the pothole and knocked a hole in his oil pan that cost him over $4,000 to have it repaired," Smith said. "Two weeks ago we had a Goggle Maps car come through and rip the front end of his bumper going five miles per hour through a pothole."
KRIS 6 News spoke with Public Works and found that the roads will be fixed, but it will take years. They said Hopkins and Vermont Roads are industrial roads, meaning they have a lot of truck traffic and are usually pretty damaged. The city of Corpus Christi has 53 miles of industrial roads to look at.
They said reconstructing industrial roads is a long and costly process. The cost to repair a single industrial road comes out to $3.5 million.
"We only have about $3 million in funds to handle those kinds of roadways, so we have to prioritize strategically to see which ones are in most need," Director of Public Works Ernie De La Garza said.
After KRIS 6 News brought attention to the issue to Public Works and City Council member Everett Roy, who oversees the Hopkins area, city crews went out to fill the potholes. However, it is a temporary fix until the two roads make their way to the top of the priority list.
Roy said an item to get more money for industrial road repairs will go before voters in November. If approved, it would speed up the repair and reconstruction process, saving vehicles and possibly even lives.
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