INDIANAPOLIS — If you live in Indiana, you've almost certainly seen potholes popping up on the roads recently.
Indianapolis Department of Public Works (DPW) is taking advantage of the warmer-than-normal temperatures to patch as many potholes as they can.
In the first week of 2026, DPW crews have already filled more than 5,600 potholes.
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Drivers like Jeremy Jackson are excited to see the work being done.
"You have to be a skilled driver, or have monster truck tires," Jackson shared. "These potholes are really bad."
I caught up with one DPW crew as they walked along, spread asphalt and smoothed over the bumpy roads. One area they worked on was along 30th Street, not far from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
"The same people who are plowing the roads when there's a lot of snow and ice are actually out patching potholes," Adam Pinsker, spokesperson for Indy DPW, shared.
If you don't swerve in time to miss a pothole, it can create car problems.
"We've seen a lot of wheel issues, tire issues and suspension and steering issues," described Ryan Miller.
Miller works at Bill's Alignment & Auto Repair, which is in the area where DPW was patching potholes.
"It's not good for the people of Indianapolis, but it definitely hasn't hurt our business," Miller continued. "People are definitely getting angrier and angrier every year that they have to deal with this."
Even though temperatures are warmer than normal for January, DPW said it still isn't warm enough to switch over to use hot mix asphalt.
Instead, DPW uses cold mix asphalt through the winter as a temporary solution to fix the roads.
"We used to get through this time of year when potholes develop because of just this seesawing back and forth from really warm to really cold weather, as we've seen so far this winter," Pinsker shared.
The more permanent hot mix will be put down in the spring.
In the meantime, if you'd like to report a pothole in Marion County, you can do so using the Mayor's Action Center website or by calling 317-327-4622.
In 2026, 469 requests to fill a pothole have already been submitted. DPW says that the time it takes to fill a pothole will depend on the weather, but you can usually expect it to take less than two weeks.
"Keep up the good work, y'all!" driver Jeremy Jackson encouraged. "Please fill them faster!"
