Hole-y moley. Every year, San José road crews repair up to 11,000 potholes. Given our 2,400 miles of paved roads, that’s almost five potholes per mile.

That sounds like a lot, but the City of San José is up to the task. Here’s how you can help fill in gaps.

Find them

A pothole is any hole in the street with a defined edge. Make sure it's not a sinkhole with rounded edges, or just your run-of-the-mill crack in the ground.

Potholes form when water gets under the pavement and softens the material beneath. I recommend using the under to avoid repetitionWhen vehicles drive over the weakened surfaces (or when freezing causes water to expand) the asphalt cracks. Eventually, those cracks get bigger and loosen pavement, and create voids. Voila — you have a pothole.I doubt freezing is the primary cause of potholes in SJ — I think weakened surfaces are the more likely cause (reason #4 on the linked PDF). You can keep the part I left in (), or omit it altogether.

Take note of where they are around your neighborhood or usual driving route.

Report them

The easiest way to report a pothole is by downloading the San José 311 app so you can report them on the go. Or simply visit the website, then:

Under “What would you like to report?” select “Pothole.”
Create or log into your account to receive updates, or “Submit as guest.”
Enter the address or drop a pin where you saw the pothole. You can also add a picture and brief description to help the repair team find it.

If you’d rather not file a report online, you can always give (408) 794-1900 a call.

Got other issues to report? Learn more about San José’s 311 service.