Residents of Florida, the American Southwest and everywhere else where snowfall is greeted with the sort of panic normally reserved for extraterrestrial invasions or the discontinuation of Twinkies, look away. This doesn't concern you.
If you live in a land that's been gripped by the Polar Vortex, has experienced immense, record-breaking amounts of snowfall and has the roads to prove it, though, look on this wonderful machine with joy. It's called the Pothole Killer, and it's here to put the traditional patching crew out of business.
It can repair a pothole in two minutes. That's 120 seconds. It gets better, though, because only one person is needed for the job. Compare that with the amount of time it takes a four-man crew to make a typically dodgy repair job, and the Pothole Killer is a big improvement. It's not perfect, though, as shown in a report from Detroit's ABC affiliate.
The mixture used to patch the holes is 35 percent water, which limits the machine's use in cold weather. And as shown in the news report, even though it's plenty quick to make repairs, a few brutal winters are all that are needed to destroy roads all over again. That said, the speed of repairs and the reduction in man power do have their advantages.
What about the cost, though? Well, the machine itself is $335,800, according to Gizmodo. Municipalities can rent it for three months for $130,000, or about $43,300 per month, which, believe it or not, is more affordable than running a four-man crew, which includes labor costs, fuel for the trucks and asphalt (not to mention the slower, less reliable repairs). Monroe County, MI, where this video was shot, has already spent over $100,000 this spring, when repair season generally runs well into the summer. It's not the best solution to the pothole problem, but it seems better than what's been done in the past.
Take a look below to see it in action.
If you live in a land that's been gripped by the Polar Vortex, has experienced immense, record-breaking amounts of snowfall and has the roads to prove it, though, look on this wonderful machine with joy. It's called the Pothole Killer, and it's here to put the traditional patching crew out of business.
It can repair a pothole in two minutes. That's 120 seconds. It gets better, though, because only one person is needed for the job. Compare that with the amount of time it takes a four-man crew to make a typically dodgy repair job, and the Pothole Killer is a big improvement. It's not perfect, though, as shown in a report from Detroit's ABC affiliate.
The mixture used to patch the holes is 35 percent water, which limits the machine's use in cold weather. And as shown in the news report, even though it's plenty quick to make repairs, a few brutal winters are all that are needed to destroy roads all over again. That said, the speed of repairs and the reduction in man power do have their advantages.
What about the cost, though? Well, the machine itself is $335,800, according to Gizmodo. Municipalities can rent it for three months for $130,000, or about $43,300 per month, which, believe it or not, is more affordable than running a four-man crew, which includes labor costs, fuel for the trucks and asphalt (not to mention the slower, less reliable repairs). Monroe County, MI, where this video was shot, has already spent over $100,000 this spring, when repair season generally runs well into the summer. It's not the best solution to the pothole problem, but it seems better than what's been done in the past.
Take a look below to see it in action.
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