ST. LOUIS – With an intense stretch of snow and freezing temperatures to start this year, it’s a prime time for potholes to pop up around the St. Louis area once again.

Over the last few weeks, St. Louis has seen nearly a foot of snow, followed by plunging sub-freezing temperatures and brief warmups. At times, the snow and ice will melt during the day, only to refreeze at night.

The off-and-on “freeze-thaw” cycle often leads to cracked roadways, worsening existing potholes and causing new ones to form.

According to the Missouri Department of Transportation, melting snow and ice allow moisture to seep beneath a pavement’s surface. When water gets trapped underneath and freezes, it expands into ice, causing the pavement to bulge. As the ice melts, the pavement contracts, leaving gaps and voids below the surface.

Add that with the repeated pressure from vehicles driving over these weakened spots, the pavement becomes quite stressed, causing chunks or pieces to break away from potholes.

According to an interactive pothole tracker on St. Louis’ city website, hundreds of service requests for potholes have been made since 2021. Requests are ongoing for various highways, arterial roads, and residential streets, with a seemingly higher frequency in the southern and eastern city boundaries of St. Louis.

According to the City of St. Louis’ website, the city aims to repair potholes for major streets within two business days, residential streets within seven business days, and alleys within 16 business days.

To report a pothole in the City of St. Louis, click here or call 314-622-4800. To report a pothole elsewhere in Missouri, click here or contact MoDOT at 888-275-6636. To report a pothole in Illinois, click here or contact IDOT at 618-346-3100.