HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, fla — Frustrated viewers continue to voice their complaints to ABC Action News about the numerous potholes and cracked roads across Tampa. Many have said they have had to repair cracked rims and popped a tire on their cars.
“Well, it’s terrible… It is part of living here, but it’t not the best part of living here," said Steve Hiro, who lives on West Morrison Avenue.
Hiro said bad roads come with the territory of living in Tampa.
Bill Bonny, who lives in South Tampa, agreed, ”We have continual new potholes here. It’s every week new potholes, new potholes”
Jerry Golder lives near Ballast Point Park. He said the city is not doing enough to address the issues.
“It feels like nobody wants to fix the potholes,” Golder said.
With frustration mounting, we are looking to Drive Tampa Bay Forward with solutions to the pothole problem.
City Councilman Bill Carlson said we need more money in the budget dedicated to the roads.
“Anybody that wants to help city council get more money for this, please contact the Mayor's office,” Carlson said.
He explained potholes are the number one complaint he hears from residents. That is why he wants more money to be put towards roads in the new budget.
“$4 million a year out of a $2 billion dollar budget is not an acceptable amount for potholes,” Carlson said.
The city of Tampa does have a pothole reporting program called “Fix it Fast.” That program filled about 5,000 potholes in 2024.
The City of Tampa sent me a statement that says,
"We dislike potholes as much as anyone else. That's why Fix it Fast was formed, to smooth out as many of them as humanly possible, as quickly as possible. Thanks to a variety of environmental and other factors, it is a tough job, but one we take very seriously. Again, we don't like bumpy roads either.
In 2024, our small but mighty Fix It Fast crew repaired nearly 5000 potholes city-wide despite a pause due to back-to-back hurricanes. The team also repairs signs, roadway obstructions, and other pavement issues in addition to filling potholes. Residents who encounter a pothole can report it directly to us through the Tampa Connect app. Our goal is to address and repair it within three business days. Importantly, issues like cave-ins and other more significant depressions in the roadway are often handled differently than standard potholes and may require additional work. These are typically handled outside of Fix It Fast.
We are committed to improving the City's roadways, making them safer and smoother. We've made massive investments in paving, doubling our capacity, which is already having a big impact on new projects aimed at better connecting neighborhoods. Through Fix it Fast, our in-house engineering and operations teams, and our community partners, we're working hard to improve the City - one street at a time."
In less than two months, more than 100 people have contacted the ABC Action News I-Team, saying they are stuck waiting on unemployment benefits and are growing more desperate by the day.
