Clevelanders are dealing with all the winter things this week. Another cold front and falling temperatures arrive late Thursday. A possible winter extension from Buckeye Chuck looms over Friday.

And then there are the potholes.

The city of Cleveland reports that it has received about 120 pothole service requests since the beginning of 2024.

City crews are working overtime to fill those holes in order to save drivers from the headaches that can come from driving over them. But some damage has already been done. Car repair shops across Northeast Ohio are getting flooded with damaged tires to fix or replace because of all the troublesome potholes popping up.

Officials told 3News they have 10 to 12 crews working to fill problem holes across Cleveland’s 10,200 streets. A city spokesperson said that they inspect every single pothole complaint that they get.

Director of Public Works Frank Williams said all these potholes are to be expected each winter in Northeast Ohio, but the last couple weeks, wet weather has been slowing down repair work.

“That has been really the circumstance that causes us to struggle a bit in keeping up the weather,” Williams said. “We’ve been getting a lot of precipitation. The freeze-thaw cycle has hurt us as well to keep up, but we have been constantly and consistently putting out crews daily to work on potholes, even on the weekends where the weather allowed.”

Williams said main roads are the top priority because of their heavier traffic and higher speed limits, then residential roadways are investigated and prioritized based on how dangerous they are.

He explained that when holes are fixed in the winter, the material used is only a temporary fix until spring. In warmer months, a hot asphalt mixture is used which permanently repairs the hole.

Safeway Tire on Superior Avenue in Cleveland told 3News on Wednesday that since November they’ve worked on at least 100 vehicles with damaged tires.

When 3News visited their garage, they were working on almost 10 cars with blown tires, cracked or bent rims, or even worse damage to the actual vehicle – all due to potholes.

Their repair specialists said they feel bad for all these folks coming in.

“I feel sorry and just hope that I can help,” said Safeway Tire Sales Manager Warren Bradford.

Bradford and his crew are recommending people drive more slowly right now.

“Drive a little bit slower than you want,” Bradford said. “Even if it’s in a 35 miles per hour, try to do 25 so you can be aware of what’s around you.”

And they empathetically shared that as fellow drivers, they literally feel everyone’s pain.

“I hit them every day,” said tire specialist Paul Curran. “Some of them you can’t avoid. You got traffic next to you. People in front of you. You don’t see it. You just hit it. They’re going to tear your car up. That’s how it is in Cleveland anyway.”

How to report Cleveland potholes