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(File photo)
SALT LAKE CITY -- If you drive between the north interchange and 600 North on Interstate 15, you may have noticed some very big potholes lately. UDOT crews tried a short-term patch, but that didn't work.
UDOT spokesman Adan Carrillo says, "We tried to do some 'cold mix' repairs and those repairs were almost coming out instantly."
Carrillo says a long-term, yet still temporary repair does work better but it is more difficult to lay down than the quick fix. It also requires more traffic restrictions to let workers do their job.
The problem is old asphalt. There are many cracks and crevices that let water seep in and when the water freezes, the asphalt breaks. Earlier construction also may have contributed to the problem.
"As we originally widened these northbound lanes to accommodate five lanes of traffic, we basically had brand new asphalt adjacent to the old asphalt," Carrillo says.
So, more potholes are a possibility. Carrillo says they'll be paying extra attention to this stretch of I-15 to fix potholes as fast as they can, but he says drivers won't have to worry for too much longer.
"In about a month from now, we'll have both directions of traffic on the brand new concrete lanes that we're finishing up reconstructing as we speak," he says.
Carrillo says the asphalt takes so much abuse daily that once a pothole forms, it get bigger rather quickly.
E-mail: pnelson@ksl.com
