NJDOT Annual Statewide Pothole Repair Campaign Begins March 4; Expect Moving Operations & Daytime Lane Closures

New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) Acting Commissioner Fran O’Connor recently announced that the annual statewide campaign to repair potholes across New Jersey will begin on Monday, March 4.

With a more active winter this year and temperatures continually fluctuating between above and below freezing, the Department expects to repair more potholes this season than last year.

Potholes are created by water seeping into cracks in the asphalt and then expanding when it freezes, so this type of weather pattern still takes a toll on state highways.

“The New Jersey Department of Transportation is beginning our annual pothole campaign on Monday, March 4. Over the next couple of months our priority will be repairing the most significant potholes from this winter,” Acting Commissioner O’Connor said. “NJDOT crews work year-round to repair potholes and keep our highways in good condition, but at this time of year, it becomes a primary focus.”

To repair potholes in the most aggressive and efficient manner, the Department will be allowing crews throughout the state to close travel lanes where necessary during daytime hours. 

When possible, crews will limit their daytime work hours to 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and will try to avoid working in travel lanes carrying traffic during peak times.

NJDOT will be using Variable Message Signs (VMS) to alert motorists of the campaign and, to the extent possible, of lane closures that could result in temporary travel delays. Detailed current repair locations will be posted on a continual basis on www.511nj.org.

As the weather warms up and asphalt plants reopen, our crews will start to perform permanent patch operations on particularly problematic sections of roadway. This is more extensive work that requires milling and paving a small area of the road, which generally will be done overnight.

In the past five fiscal years (FY19 – FY23), NJDOT has repaired an average of approximately 162,000 potholes per year. The average has steadily decreased over the past several years because of NJDOT’s emphasis on repaving our State Highways, improving the percentage of roads in good and fair condition from 47 percent in 2007 to 81 percent last year. So far in FY24 (July 1, 2023 – February 29, 2024), NJDOT has repaired about 93,500 potholes, with the busiest pothole repair season just starting.

It is important to slow down in work zones so NJDOT crews can safely make repairs. New Jersey’s Move Over law requires motorists to move over, if it is safe to do so, when approaching an emergency or service vehicle stopped on the side of the road.  

If you cannot safely MOVE OVER, PLEASE SLOW DOWN.

In addition to our crews monitoring and reporting potholes that need repair on state highways, we encourage motorists to report potholes as well.  Motorists may call 1-800-POTHOLE or go online to report potholes on state roads using a new mapping feature to help identify the exact location of the pothole.

To report potholes on county roads, contact the appropriate jurisdiction.  The Department responds as quickly as possible, especially to reports of potholes that create safety concerns based on their size and location.