'Deep' reappearing pothole at Sunset/Old Taupo Rds intersection frustrates resident

A deep pothole at the intersection of Sunset and Old Taupo Rds has been the source of regular complaints to Waka Kotahi. Photo / File

What does it take to fix a pothole?

That's the question Karel Rottier has been left with after calling roading authorities repeatedly about one that keeps appearing at a busy city intersection.

Rottier drives through the Sunset/Old Taupo Rds intersection two to four times a day.

Since before Christmas last year, his trips through the intersection have included driving over a deep pothole.

Rottier has repeatedly brought his concerns to Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency but says he has not been satisfied with the response.

"Every week I ring, someone throws some cold-mix in [the pothole] and three days later we get the same problem," Rottier told the Rotorua Daily Post.

Rottier said he believed the pothole to be dangerous.

"I feel sorry for the smaller cars. The other day I saw two cars almost bottom out. It's that deep."

Karel Rottier has been concerned about this pothole at the intersection of Sunset and Old Taupo Rds since December 2020. Photo / Supplied

Last week, Rottier was told there were no records of his complaints but Waka Kotahi regional manager maintenance and operations Rob Campbell said this has since been corrected.

"Unfortunately, details of Mr Rottier's previous calls had been recorded in such a way that they weren't easily found," Campbell said.

"After some further analysis, we have now found a total of five interactions with Mr Rottier regarding the pothole near the intersection of Old Taupo Rd and Sunset Rd."

Campbell said Rottier's initial interactions with the Waka Kotahi contact centre were assigned to Higgins Contractors Ltd, the maintenance contractor for Eastern Bay of Plenty.

"This pothole has been filled with cold-mix asphalt 10 times since September 2020," Campbell said.

"These repairs were a temporary solution until more permanent repairs could be completed and, as such, are not expected to last the same way we would expect a permanent repair to."

The deep pothole has been temporarily remedied several times but none of the repairs last longer than a few days. Photo / Supplied

Campbell said the costs of the temporary repairs were absorbed by Higgins as part of its contract and were not passed on to Waka Kotahi.

"Our local office became aware of Mr Rottier's concerns earlier this month and staff have been working with both our [network outcomes] contractor and Mr Rottier to resolve," Campbell said.

"A more robust temporary repair is being carried out this week, with the intent to return within the next two weeks, weather dependent, to undertake a permanent repair."

The Higgins office in Rotorua was contacted but declined to comment.