What is a pothole?

Heard the word but not sure what it means? Find out here.

A pothole is where the surface of the road has been eroded or damaged and a hollow has developed. Potholes can form very quickly particularly following cold or wet weather and can vary in depth.

Often they are bowl-shaped with ragged edges, occurring when the top layer of a road surface or road has worn or eroded away by a combination of weather and passing traffic, exposing supporting layers or foundation below.

Rising temperatures after sub zero conditions, as we have experienced, causes more potholes to appear. That is why potholes normally appear every year in late winter or early spring. This year we have seen more potholes appear due to the very severe weather, snow, ice and freezing temperatures.

Once a pothole has formed the action of traffic over it will remove broken pieces of road surface and if water from rain or flooding fills the pothole this can accelerate its deterioration as the water washes away the loose particles of road under the force of passing traffic.

What causes a pothole?