By: Madison Rosenberg, Follow South Jersey Community Journalist
SOUTH JERSEY – In the first few months of 2026, New Jersey has experienced a lot of intense weather. Icy blizzards disrupted the lives of residents in the Garden State in January and February, and residents can expect more extreme weather on the horizon.
Although the snowstorms that froze South Jersey are in the rearview mirror, their effects linger well into the spring. On Monday, March 16, New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) crews began their annual road repair campaign. Since this past winter was “more active” than usual, and temperatures are unpredictable and changing drastically, a large number of pothole repairs are expected, according to a press release by N.J.D.O.T. The repairs are expected to take several weeks to complete.
Potholes are an occurrence that can happen overnight, and formations are sped up when there are weather changes like this. NJDOT spokesman Steve Schapiro says that the conditions of this past winter were harsh on the roads.
“This winter has been extremely active, with two major storms, and many clipper systems that have brought freezing rain and snow to parts of the state on a regular basis,” Schapiro said.
Potholes are created by water seeping into cracks in the road. When the water freezes, the cracks expand, according to Schapiro. Because the first winter storm was so cold and the snow was so icy, the roads were bound for repairs. The next storm that followed, as well as other harsh conditions, only contributed to the issue.
Since the start of the campaign, the Department of Transportation has still been working tirelessly and aggressively to repair potholes that popped up over the winter storm. Due to the intensity of the storm, there are still new potholes that are causing construction efforts to create traffic.
“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,” Schapiro said. “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 during peak commuting times.”
Pothole repairs require several steps, and different types of materials are required to fill a pothole permanently. Technicians are required to revisit potholes during different parts of the year to ensure that the weather conditions don’t reopen a pothole.
“We use a cold patch material in the winter. A useful characteristic of cold patch is that it remains soft in cold temperatures and does not require heating,” said Schapiro. “However, cold patches are temporary and may require us to refill the same pothole several times during the winter. In the spring, when asphalt plants are open, we use hot asphalt, which binds better, to make permanent repairs.”
The start of spring is the most active time for the Department of Transportation, but these storms exacerbated the pothole problem. Schapiro says the potholes are addressed in the spring because the department pays more attention to keeping the roads clear of ice and snow, and potholes are repaired when there isn’t a storm cleanup.
In addition to the repair campaign, N.J.D.O.T. works tirelessly year-round on road repairs, dealing with hundreds of thousands of potholes yearly.
“From July 2024 to June 2025, N.J.D.O.T. repaired about 155,838 potholes,” Schapiro said. “So far from July first, 2025, to March 30, 2026, NJDOT has repaired about 137,000 potholes, spring is the busiest pothole repair. That compares to 103,000 for the same period in 2025. Since December first, we have repaired about 99,000 potholes compared with about 73,000 for the same period last year.
With this winter being so unpredictable and the possibility of an upcoming El Niño event in summer, it is unclear what conditions lie ahead for New Jersey residents and what unforeseen weather-related problems they could face.
To report a pothole, residents can call 1-800-768-4653 or visit https://www.njdotproblemreporting.nj.gov/.
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