Potholes On Broken Arrow Expressway Causing Headaches For Drivers

For the second time in two weeks, drivers are upset after getting flat tires because of large potholes along the Broken Arrow Expressway near downtown.

"So I was exiting off the Utica exit from eastbound BA and I hit a pothole that I knew, woo, right when I hit it I knew it was bad," says Mike Perryman.

He says he was on his way to visit his dad in the hospital when a flat tire detoured his day, along with several other drivers.

"Around a dozen, we had 5 on this street at one time that was either waiting on a tow or changing tires … on all the cars I've seen, it's been the right front tire," says Perryman.

Just two weeks ago, drivers were having the same issues with potholes on the same stretch of highway. ODOT says part of the problem is that because of construction, traffic is driving on pavement that didn't get much use before.

"This was a heavily patched area, the pavement in this area is definitely at the end of its service life and so we're really hoping to move quickly on this pavement rehab project just to get everyone on some new pavement as soon as possible," says ODOT Spokesman T.J. Gerlach.

He says in a work zone, the contractor takes responsibility for road conditions, and they're working to be more proactive about potholes.

"Our inspectors as well as the contractor are just going to try to keep a better eye on the pavement condition throughout the work zone and try to stay more on top of some patching," says Gerlach.

Mike Perryman says he hopes someone will help pay for the damage done to his car.

"Any tire repair, tire replacement, something like that, yeah I want to see if I can get the city or their contractor to be good for it, because I don't think they should be ruining everyone's tires trying to drive on the highway," he says.

ODOT says drivers looking to file a claim should reach out to Sherwood Construction.