Recently, on a flight to California, I had the pleasure of sitting next to a delightful man who said he worked for the city.

I complained about the city’s maintenance of its roads. I described my observation of a repair.

A truck filled with asphalt backed up to the pothole; a crewman shoveled asphalt into the pothole, then used the back end of the shovel to pat down the asphalt. He got into the truck and drove away.

I cannot believe this is a proper way to repair potholes. If there was too much asphalt, the pothole now becomes a bump in the road. If too little asphalt, the pothole still exists. “Repaired” areas in the roads are a mishmash of multiple patchwork repairs.

He laughed and said he used to be a member of that same crew. He told me I was correct in my observation. He explained the city just wants to maintain the appearance that the city is at work.

The poor condition of our city roads is proof of that mentality.

Carol Ching

Ala Moana

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