Twin Ports potholes can leave drivers with repair bills over $1,500

A pothole hit in the Twin Ports can turn into a repair bill of more than $1,500, a price that lands long after the tire blowout or hard jolt has passed. Mechanics told FOX 21 that the damage often goes beyond a flat tire, with suspension problems, steering trouble and underbody damage all adding up fast.

The roads themselves are working against drivers. MnDOT says potholes start when snow, ice and rain seep into pavement cracks, then expand during severe cold and keep breaking apart through the freeze-thaw cycle. Duluth public works says that is one reason keeping city streets in repair is such a constant challenge in Minnesota, where weather swings keep stressing pavement through the winter and into spring.

That burden stretches across a large network. Duluth says it maintains more than 530 center-line miles of city streets, and its pothole process says crews prioritize repairs using public safety, budgets, staffing, weather, environmental impacts and the availability of materials. The city also says its Resident Problem Reporter is a pilot program for street complaints, a sign that residents still have more than one way to flag a problem when a hole opens up near home, work or a school route.

The first hurdle for drivers is often figuring out who owns the road. MnDOT says pothole reports should go to the correct authority, whether the street is maintained by the state, the county or a city, and it specifically tells residents to check road ownership before filing. St. Louis County Public Works also maintains an online Report a Problem form for county road issues, while MnDOT’s own seasonal load restrictions are part of the spring and winter system used to protect state highways during thawing periods.

For drivers trying to recover repair costs, the clock matters. Duluth’s claims office says damage claims are reviewed by the City Attorney’s Claims Division, and the city warns residents not to wait beyond 180 days to submit notice of a claim. In a region where winter loads, spring thaw and heavy traffic keep grinding at pavement, the cost of an open pothole often ends up split between public agencies and the people driving over them.