Two councillors on a mission to patch potholes in Montreal borough

Two Montreal councillors say the Plante administration isn't moving fast enough when it comes to pothole repairs -- and they're taking matters into their own hands by using the city's app.

Councillors Julien Henault-Ratelle and Alba Zuniga Ramos have been travelling street to street in the Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough, tracking the number of potholes on the roads.

Using Montreal's resident services app, they request repair jobs for the damage they find.

"It's really an emergency situation. These roads need to be completely redone," said Henault-Ratelle.

They say that at this point in the summer, the roads should be in better shape.

"It seems to be a consistent problem," said Zuniga. "It seems to be an area that's been forgotten, and it's unfortunate."

A consistent problem that's province-wide: last May, a motorcyclist died on Route 117 after the car in front of him swerved to avoid a pothole.

The councillors say the state of the streets is a risk for pedestrians too -- especially for those with mobility issues and seniors getting in and out of vehicles.

They want the city to spend more money on road maintenance.

Although councillors and residents say the situation seems to be getting worse, Montreal officials say this summer is pretty standard in terms of the number of potholes on the road.

According to Philippe Sabourin, a spokesperson for the city, more than 80,000 potholes have been filled so far this season.

"Nothing compares to 2017 when we had to fix 200,000 potholes, " said Sabourin. "So there are less potholes this year."