Telegraph photo by MATHEW PLAMONDON Alex Maclean grabs a shovel full of hot top filling to be pressed into a pothole on Manchester Street.

Two to four crews are assigned the task of filling potholes. They drive from one hole to the next, filling the holes with either hot or cold patch in an attempt to repair the surface of the roadways.

However, some of the work ends up causing more problems for workers.

“Unfortunately, because of the weather, with the warm days and the freezing nights,” division spokeswoman Lauren Byers said, “the water freezes and it reopens some of the potholes we have already filled.”

Byers said as long as the holes are still appearing, crews will be out working to fix the problems. She said the number of crews depends on the human resources available. Officials must also consider the importance of the potholes in comparison to other work being done around the city.

Telegraph photo by MATHEW PLAMONDON Worker from the Street Department workers ready a large pothole on Manchester Street for repair.

The department takes funds straight from money budgeted for road and asphalt work, Byers said, because money is not allocated solely for the repair of potholes.

As spring begins, Byers said the patchwork will become less of a need because the department will have access to the more permanent fill mixture.

She said due to fact that most asphalt plants are closed during the winter, with the closest open supplier being Brox Industries – which is almost an hour away in Dracut, Massachusetts – the crews have to use a mixture called cold patch. This mixture only serves as a temporary fix until the spring when city crews have access to hot top filler.

With the weather warming up, Byers said the crews are currently switching to the hot top.

“Currently, we’re using hot top. We use the hot top in the spring, which is more permanent,” Byers said.

Telegraph photo by MATHEW PLAMONDON Prior to filling a pothole on Manchester Street, Alex Maclean sets a bonding agent to ensure the hot top mixture sets to the divot.

As so many crews are out on the roadways working, she said it is critical for drivers to be aware of the workers.

“They do work very hard, and they work all day, and we want to make sure that everybody is cautious when they see our crews in the road, and to drive by them carefully” she said.

Telegraph photo by MATHEW PLAMONDON A worker from the Street Department presses hot top into potholes on Manchester Street.

Telegraph photo by MATHEW PLAMONDON Alex Maclean and a crew of pothole workers from the Street Department fill potholes on Manchester Street with hot top filling.