6 days ago
'Puncture, puncture, puncture': potholes cause bump in tyre business
Some car tyre businesses in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie are experiencing more than a doubling in demand as drivers pay the price for damaged roads after last week's torrential downpour.
About 300 millimetres of rain have fallen in the Lower Hunter in May, more than three times the monthly average.
While residents have mostly enjoyed a break from heavy showers this week, motorists have been plagued by potholes that have sprung up across the suburban and rural road network.
JAX Tyres & Auto Newcastle owner Mark Hayes said his business has seen a 50 per cent increase in tyre and wheel damage caused by impacts with potholes.
"It was obvious on Monday; we just had puncture, puncture, puncture," Mr Hayes said.
"We've got a car here that's jacked up that needs three wheels repaired that have buckled.
"High-performance cars have light-weight wheels, and big potholes don't agree with them, so there's been a pretty dramatic increase."
Mr Hayes said some of the worst potholes his customers had reported were on Myall Road at Garden Suburb, Fullerton Street in Stockton, Parkway Avenue in Hamilton East and Merewether's Llewellyn Street.
JAX has also seen a 30 per cent increase in tyre punctures from nails and screws, which Mr Hayes says is common after heavy rain.
Ben Haynes, owner of Cardiff-based wheel and alloy repair specialist Promac Machine Shop, has been working overtime this week to get through 20 wheel repairs a day.
Promac usually fixes up to five wheels a day.
"It's all pothole damage," Mr Haynes said.
Some of Promac's work has involved roadside repairs to help stranded cars after suffering pothole damage.
"Lots of people don't have spares anymore," he said.
"There are silly European cars with no spares. We have to get them turned around pretty quickly, so there have been a few late nights trying to get everything done."
The Newcastle Herald reported last Saturday that a massive pothole on Myall Road at Garden Suburb caused multiple cars to damage tyres and forced Lake Macquarie City Council road crew to make five separate repairs.
Emily Franklin, the acting manager of O'Neill's Tyre & Autocare Warners Bay, said she'd seen a rise in customers with tyre damage, particularly from potholes on Myall Road and Hillsborough Road.
"It's mostly been at night when it's been raining; we've had people come in with tyre damage and say, 'Be careful on Myall Road, there's a bad one there'," Ms Franklin said.
Both Lake Macquarie City Council and the City of Newcastle have scheduled overtime shifts for their crews to get through the deluge of road damage caused by the heavy rain.
LMCC's manager of city works, Matt Brogan, said that over the past fortnight, the council's road patching crews had been focused on high-risk potholes.
"Our normal process would be that we proactively get around the whole LGA in a month," Mr Brogan said. "But we've moved off that program at the moment to deal with the high risk."
Mr Brogan said it was impossible to put a figure on the number of potholes across Lake Macquarie, but his "gut feeling" was that it would take two months before the road crews could resume with proactive road management.
Under dry conditions, road crews use a hot asphalt mix to repair potholes. The hot mix has to be stored and applied to the road at around 150 degrees and typically provides the best longevity.
However, during rain, the hot mix cannot be used, and a cold asphalt is applied instead for a temporary fix.
Lake Macquarie council has also been using a modified cold mix asphalt for the past three years that can be applied during rain in smaller potholes and without a tar patching truck.
However, modified cold mix asphalt is 10 times more expensive than regular asphalt.
City of Newcastle crews typically make initial repairs with cold mix asphalt, followed by hot mix a month later.
Further repairs could include spray tack coat emulsion, hot mix asphalt, a thin sheet of asphalt, and emulsion to seal edges, as well as applying sand to help limit tyre adhesion.
"Following the recent weather event, extra crews were added to cover a seven-day roster to attend to the increased number of potholes that resulted from the high volume of rain," a spokesperson for Newcastle council said.
"Pending weather conditions, this measure will remain in place until a significant portion of the road damage has been repaired."
Some car tyre businesses in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie are experiencing more than a doubling in demand as drivers pay the price for damaged roads after last week's torrential downpour.
About 300 millimetres of rain have fallen in the Lower Hunter in May, more than three times the monthly average.
While residents have mostly enjoyed a break from heavy showers this week, motorists have been plagued by potholes that have sprung up across the suburban and rural road network.
JAX Tyres & Auto Newcastle owner Mark Hayes said his business has seen a 50 per cent increase in tyre and wheel damage caused by impacts with potholes.
"It was obvious on Monday; we just had puncture, puncture, puncture," Mr Hayes said.
"We've got a car here that's jacked up that needs three wheels repaired that have buckled.
"High-performance cars have light-weight wheels, and big potholes don't agree with them, so there's been a pretty dramatic increase."
Mr Hayes said some of the worst potholes his customers had reported were on Myall Road at Garden Suburb, Fullerton Street in Stockton, Parkway Avenue in Hamilton East and Merewether's Llewellyn Street.
JAX has also seen a 30 per cent increase in tyre punctures from nails and screws, which Mr Hayes says is common after heavy rain.
Ben Haynes, owner of Cardiff-based wheel and alloy repair specialist Promac Machine Shop, has been working overtime this week to get through 20 wheel repairs a day.
Promac usually fixes up to five wheels a day.
"It's all pothole damage," Mr Haynes said.
Some of Promac's work has involved roadside repairs to help stranded cars after suffering pothole damage.
"Lots of people don't have spares anymore," he said.
"There are silly European cars with no spares. We have to get them turned around pretty quickly, so there have been a few late nights trying to get everything done."
The Newcastle Herald reported last Saturday that a massive pothole on Myall Road at Garden Suburb caused multiple cars to damage tyres and forced Lake Macquarie City Council road crew to make five separate repairs.
Emily Franklin, the acting manager of O'Neill's Tyre & Autocare Warners Bay, said she'd seen a rise in customers with tyre damage, particularly from potholes on Myall Road and Hillsborough Road.
"It's mostly been at night when it's been raining; we've had people come in with tyre damage and say, 'Be careful on Myall Road, there's a bad one there'," Ms Franklin said.
Both Lake Macquarie City Council and the City of Newcastle have scheduled overtime shifts for their crews to get through the deluge of road damage caused by the heavy rain.
LMCC's manager of city works, Matt Brogan, said that over the past fortnight, the council's road patching crews had been focused on high-risk potholes.
"Our normal process would be that we proactively get around the whole LGA in a month," Mr Brogan said. "But we've moved off that program at the moment to deal with the high risk."
Mr Brogan said it was impossible to put a figure on the number of potholes across Lake Macquarie, but his "gut feeling" was that it would take two months before the road crews could resume with proactive road management.
Under dry conditions, road crews use a hot asphalt mix to repair potholes. The hot mix has to be stored and applied to the road at around 150 degrees and typically provides the best longevity.
However, during rain, the hot mix cannot be used, and a cold asphalt is applied instead for a temporary fix.
Lake Macquarie council has also been using a modified cold mix asphalt for the past three years that can be applied during rain in smaller potholes and without a tar patching truck.
However, modified cold mix asphalt is 10 times more expensive than regular asphalt.
City of Newcastle crews typically make initial repairs with cold mix asphalt, followed by hot mix a month later.
Further repairs could include spray tack coat emulsion, hot mix asphalt, a thin sheet of asphalt, and emulsion to seal edges, as well as applying sand to help limit tyre adhesion.
"Following the recent weather event, extra crews were added to cover a seven-day roster to attend to the increased number of potholes that resulted from the high volume of rain," a spokesperson for Newcastle council said.
"Pending weather conditions, this measure will remain in place until a significant portion of the road damage has been repaired."
Some car tyre businesses in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie are experiencing more than a doubling in demand as drivers pay the price for damaged roads after last week's torrential downpour.
About 300 millimetres of rain have fallen in the Lower Hunter in May, more than three times the monthly average.
While residents have mostly enjoyed a break from heavy showers this week, motorists have been plagued by potholes that have sprung up across the suburban and rural road network.
JAX Tyres & Auto Newcastle owner Mark Hayes said his business has seen a 50 per cent increase in tyre and wheel damage caused by impacts with potholes.
"It was obvious on Monday; we just had puncture, puncture, puncture," Mr Hayes said.
"We've got a car here that's jacked up that needs three wheels repaired that have buckled.
"High-performance cars have light-weight wheels, and big potholes don't agree with them, so there's been a pretty dramatic increase."
Mr Hayes said some of the worst potholes his customers had reported were on Myall Road at Garden Suburb, Fullerton Street in Stockton, Parkway Avenue in Hamilton East and Merewether's Llewellyn Street.
JAX has also seen a 30 per cent increase in tyre punctures from nails and screws, which Mr Hayes says is common after heavy rain.
Ben Haynes, owner of Cardiff-based wheel and alloy repair specialist Promac Machine Shop, has been working overtime this week to get through 20 wheel repairs a day.
Promac usually fixes up to five wheels a day.
"It's all pothole damage," Mr Haynes said.
Some of Promac's work has involved roadside repairs to help stranded cars after suffering pothole damage.
"Lots of people don't have spares anymore," he said.
"There are silly European cars with no spares. We have to get them turned around pretty quickly, so there have been a few late nights trying to get everything done."
The Newcastle Herald reported last Saturday that a massive pothole on Myall Road at Garden Suburb caused multiple cars to damage tyres and forced Lake Macquarie City Council road crew to make five separate repairs.
Emily Franklin, the acting manager of O'Neill's Tyre & Autocare Warners Bay, said she'd seen a rise in customers with tyre damage, particularly from potholes on Myall Road and Hillsborough Road.
"It's mostly been at night when it's been raining; we've had people come in with tyre damage and say, 'Be careful on Myall Road, there's a bad one there'," Ms Franklin said.
Both Lake Macquarie City Council and the City of Newcastle have scheduled overtime shifts for their crews to get through the deluge of road damage caused by the heavy rain.
LMCC's manager of city works, Matt Brogan, said that over the past fortnight, the council's road patching crews had been focused on high-risk potholes.
"Our normal process would be that we proactively get around the whole LGA in a month," Mr Brogan said. "But we've moved off that program at the moment to deal with the high risk."
Mr Brogan said it was impossible to put a figure on the number of potholes across Lake Macquarie, but his "gut feeling" was that it would take two months before the road crews could resume with proactive road management.
Under dry conditions, road crews use a hot asphalt mix to repair potholes. The hot mix has to be stored and applied to the road at around 150 degrees and typically provides the best longevity.
However, during rain, the hot mix cannot be used, and a cold asphalt is applied instead for a temporary fix.
Lake Macquarie council has also been using a modified cold mix asphalt for the past three years that can be applied during rain in smaller potholes and without a tar patching truck.
However, modified cold mix asphalt is 10 times more expensive than regular asphalt.
City of Newcastle crews typically make initial repairs with cold mix asphalt, followed by hot mix a month later.
Further repairs could include spray tack coat emulsion, hot mix asphalt, a thin sheet of asphalt, and emulsion to seal edges, as well as applying sand to help limit tyre adhesion.
"Following the recent weather event, extra crews were added to cover a seven-day roster to attend to the increased number of potholes that resulted from the high volume of rain," a spokesperson for Newcastle council said.
"Pending weather conditions, this measure will remain in place until a significant portion of the road damage has been repaired."
Some car tyre businesses in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie are experiencing more than a doubling in demand as drivers pay the price for damaged roads after last week's torrential downpour.
About 300 millimetres of rain have fallen in the Lower Hunter in May, more than three times the monthly average.
While residents have mostly enjoyed a break from heavy showers this week, motorists have been plagued by potholes that have sprung up across the suburban and rural road network.
JAX Tyres & Auto Newcastle owner Mark Hayes said his business has seen a 50 per cent increase in tyre and wheel damage caused by impacts with potholes.
"It was obvious on Monday; we just had puncture, puncture, puncture," Mr Hayes said.
"We've got a car here that's jacked up that needs three wheels repaired that have buckled.
"High-performance cars have light-weight wheels, and big potholes don't agree with them, so there's been a pretty dramatic increase."
Mr Hayes said some of the worst potholes his customers had reported were on Myall Road at Garden Suburb, Fullerton Street in Stockton, Parkway Avenue in Hamilton East and Merewether's Llewellyn Street.
JAX has also seen a 30 per cent increase in tyre punctures from nails and screws, which Mr Hayes says is common after heavy rain.
Ben Haynes, owner of Cardiff-based wheel and alloy repair specialist Promac Machine Shop, has been working overtime this week to get through 20 wheel repairs a day.
Promac usually fixes up to five wheels a day.
"It's all pothole damage," Mr Haynes said.
Some of Promac's work has involved roadside repairs to help stranded cars after suffering pothole damage.
"Lots of people don't have spares anymore," he said.
"There are silly European cars with no spares. We have to get them turned around pretty quickly, so there have been a few late nights trying to get everything done."
The Newcastle Herald reported last Saturday that a massive pothole on Myall Road at Garden Suburb caused multiple cars to damage tyres and forced Lake Macquarie City Council road crew to make five separate repairs.
Emily Franklin, the acting manager of O'Neill's Tyre & Autocare Warners Bay, said she'd seen a rise in customers with tyre damage, particularly from potholes on Myall Road and Hillsborough Road.
"It's mostly been at night when it's been raining; we've had people come in with tyre damage and say, 'Be careful on Myall Road, there's a bad one there'," Ms Franklin said.
Both Lake Macquarie City Council and the City of Newcastle have scheduled overtime shifts for their crews to get through the deluge of road damage caused by the heavy rain.
LMCC's manager of city works, Matt Brogan, said that over the past fortnight, the council's road patching crews had been focused on high-risk potholes.
"Our normal process would be that we proactively get around the whole LGA in a month," Mr Brogan said. "But we've moved off that program at the moment to deal with the high risk."
Mr Brogan said it was impossible to put a figure on the number of potholes across Lake Macquarie, but his "gut feeling" was that it would take two months before the road crews could resume with proactive road management.
Under dry conditions, road crews use a hot asphalt mix to repair potholes. The hot mix has to be stored and applied to the road at around 150 degrees and typically provides the best longevity.
However, during rain, the hot mix cannot be used, and a cold asphalt is applied instead for a temporary fix.
Lake Macquarie council has also been using a modified cold mix asphalt for the past three years that can be applied during rain in smaller potholes and without a tar patching truck.
However, modified cold mix asphalt is 10 times more expensive than regular asphalt.
City of Newcastle crews typically make initial repairs with cold mix asphalt, followed by hot mix a month later.
Further repairs could include spray tack coat emulsion, hot mix asphalt, a thin sheet of asphalt, and emulsion to seal edges, as well as applying sand to help limit tyre adhesion.
"Following the recent weather event, extra crews were added to cover a seven-day roster to attend to the increased number of potholes that resulted from the high volume of rain," a spokesperson for Newcastle council said.
"Pending weather conditions, this measure will remain in place until a significant portion of the road damage has been repaired."
