Gov. Hogan Says He's Working On A Fix For The I-295 Pothole Problem
BALTIMORE (WJZ) — Potholes continue to be an issue across the region. I-295 seems to be struggling in particular, but Governor Larry Hogan said good things could be coming soon.
Hogan said he is currently working with multiple agencies for the State to take over ownership of the bumpy highway.
As of now, the stretch of highway is owned by the U.S. Park Service.
"We're continuing to work with the Department of Interior, the Park service and with our congressional delegation to see if we can't get them to consider transferring it to the State so we can improve and increase capacity on that road and fix it permanently because we have 197,000 vehicles on the road that's built for 10,000," Hogan said.
Park service did emergency repairs in late March after a letter penned from Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D)- Maryland, put pressure on the agency.
"They're now going to get the job filling potholes with what they call a pothole killer," Van Hollen said.
That job could get done most likely with a hot-mix asphalt, which requires temperatures of 50 degrees or warmer.
The State Highway Administration spent $3.1 million to patch potholes in 2018.
Hogan said the federal government is not interested, despite knowing the road is overpopulated, but there is good news.
They have started to take some emergency efforts to fill the potholes from swallowing the cars but that's a temporary patchwork that's being done and we're happy to see it, but it's not what needs to happen in order to fix the problem.
While there is no timetable to fix all of the potholes, crews may need to address it by closing lanes overnight.
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