When a citizen reports a pothole to the Clackamas County, Oregon (338,391), pothole hotline, a pothole crew repairs the pothole within two days. Callers simply report the location of the pothole to the individual who answers the phone or to an answering machine, and the message is distributed to one of the county’s two pothole crews. With 1,500 miles of county roads to maintain in this mountainous area, the county prefers to repair potholes early, before they grow and become filled with water. Claims for damages to cars caused by potholes have dropped since 1997, when the hotline was implemented, from 68 to virtually none. Because the 68 claims cost the county $40,000 and the program uses existing pothole crews, the program saves the county money. The pothole hotline is advertised through newspaper articles, the county’s Web site, small cards, and ads on public works trucks. Ron Oberg Information Officer Clackamas County 908 Main Street Oregon City, OR 97045 503/557-6391 Fax: 503/655-8898 E-mail: rono@co.clackamas.or.us Web site: www.co.clackamas.or.us/dtd/trans/htmls/pothole.html