TAMPA, Fla. — You can find potholes all over Tampa.
Chances are your car may have been jolted by one of these craters in the road, especially during the rainy season.
The city started a program called “Fix it Fast” three years ago, using tips from drivers to identify potholes and get them repaired quickly.
But the I-Team has learned hundreds of vehicles have ended up damaged, and your tax dollars are paying the bill.
“I'm gonna just say it like this...the streets are horrible,” said Tampa resident Phyllis Bridges, who drives from East Tampa on her commute to work at the Bay Pines V.A. Hospital.
“All these potholes make the place look horrible,” said resident Carlos Hill.
“There's been an issue with potholes for quite a few years now,” said Tyron Dayhoff, who lives in South Tampa.
President: “Fill the potholes”
The pothole problem in Tampa dates back decades.
During a 2004 campaign stop in Tampa, President George W. Bush pointed out the issue at a speech attended by local leaders.
“It’s such an honor to be here in Tampa, a beautiful part of our country. Thanks for having me,” President Bush said. “My only advice is fill the potholes.”
Transportation technician Frank Scott, Sr. leads one of Tampa’s two “Fix it Fast” pothole repair teams.
“This is the busiest time of the year because we have all the rain, all the erosion, all the traffic and the water settling in low areas causes the potholes,” Scott said when we met his team filling a pothole on a quiet residential street.
More than 12,000 potholes filled through program
The city started the program three years ago, allowing people to call or use the city’s website or app to report where potholes are located.
The goal is to repair them within 72 hours.
But this month, plagued by heavy rains, crews are averaging 118 hours (about 5 days).
Soon after a crew arrives, asphalt is poured, and the hole is filled, leveled, and tamped down within minutes.
“I believe that’s gonna remain there for quite a long time,” Scott said.
Since August of 2021, city records show 12,455 potholes have been filled through the program, including 529 so far this month.
Plenty of problems remain
With aging roads and more traffic, it’s a problem that’s not going away.
“Especially with all the rain, they keep appearing,” Dayhoff said.
We spotted a pothole in East Tampa that measured four inches deep.
Neighbors call a stretch of South Clark Street near Gandy Blvd. an obstacle course.
“If you go too fast, you’re gonna break your neck,” Hill said.
We found potholes on MacDill, Himes, Waters, Grady and other thoroughfares.
“You've got to be careful when you’re driving so you can miss them. And that’s dangerous too because when you’re trying to miss that... you might run off the side of the road,” Bridges said.
She hit a pothole on East Seventh Street in January.
“Those rims used to look good,” she said, pointing to one of her Mercedes AMG rims, which was cracked.
The wheel had to be soldered back together.
“It was $310,” Bridges said.
Chris Brazzeal of Brazzeal Automotive often deals with customers who’ve hit potholes.
“You start multiplying by two wheels, tires, wheels, alignment, whatever else comes up, it can be $400 or $500, up to a thousand, $1,500 real fast,” Brazzeal said.
Brazzeal says he advises drivers to file claims with the city.
“I've actually had several customers do that and come back to me and let me know it had paid off. They did get reimbursed by the city,” he said.
Phyllis filed a claim in January but hasn’t been reimbursed yet.
“The lady said take a picture, send us the picture, the street address. And we’ll go from there,” she said.
Jeremy Louis hit a pothole on Armenia Avenue with his Nissan Pathfinder in early July.
“My front started making some odd creaking sounds,” Louis said. “It’s a bushing.”
The repair estimate is more than $1,000.
“It's going up on a lift. And the whole axel’s going to be pulled down. It's an undertaking,” he said.
City paid to fix 433 vehicles damaged by potholes
Jeremy searched the Tampa City website to learn more about the claims process and found a form online.
"I had no idea it even existed. Very simple to get to and takes 30 seconds to fill out that form,” Louis said.
We learned from a public records request that the city paid 433 pothole damage claims totaling $170,445 during the past three years.
That’s an average payment of $393 per claim.
“Everyone that I've talked to,” Louis said, “had no clue that it existed.”
“I am glad that it will help people recoup their money,” Bridges said.
We went to East Seventh Avenue and saw the pothole that damaged Bridges’ car six months earlier.
She says she only reported it to the city’s claims department and not through the Fix it Fast program.
City officials say if your car is damaged by a pothole, you need to make sure to report it in both places.
“The quicker you can call that stuff out, the quicker you can save either your vehicle or another neighbor’s or friend’s vehicle from having damage as well,” Brazzeal said.
City Statement
A city spokesperson provided the following information:
"The All for Transportation Tax would have paid for a lot of road work that does not currently have funding. Certainly, more resources would help move repairs and a transit expansion along quicker, but we aren't letting a lack of new funding sources stop us from serving our citizens every day - which is clear through programs like Fix it Fast. The City of Tampa is also continuing to focus on repaving our streets using in-house resources, further saving residents tax dollars over hiring an outside contractor."
Anyone who has concerns about their vehicle being damaged because of a pothole can pursue their claim through our Risk Management Department. Details can be found online by clicking here.
If you have a story you think the I-Team should investigate, email us at adam@abcactionnews.com.
