An undercover duo fed up with dodging potholes in the East Bay is taking matters into its own hands.
Known as the "Pothole Vigilantes," the two patron saints of pavement who wish to remain anonymous are working their way around Oakland, filling jarring potholes that wreak havoc on motorists.
"I've lived here since 2013 and I've experience it pretty bad," one of the vigilantes said Monday night. "I hit a pothole, multiple potholes, multiple times a day."
Residents appreciative of the vigilantes' work have responded with both praise and financial contributions, hoping to see other problem craters smoothed out.
"[We] put other flyers around the neighborhood to see where people wanted to fill potholes," one of the vigilantes said. "We've filled six so far. [We've] had overwhelming support from the community, and donations keep flowing in."
The vigilantes' started their covert work roughly two weeks ago when they filled one pothole using EZ Street Asphalt. They've since purchased the pothole-filling mixture in bulk to cut costs and turned to social media to find their future pothole projects. A GoFundMe page has been created for anyone who wants to contribute funds to the road repairs.
The vigilantes' Instagram page, which has nearly 2,000 followers, chronicles their pothole-fixing efforts across Oakland.
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"Thanks for what you're doing, and please stay safe," one Instagram user penned in the comments section of a post showing "@potholevigilantes" written in chalk next to a filled pothole.
"Come across the Bay one time," another Instagram user wrote. "SF needs yall."
The Oakland Department of Transportation said it can't condone what the vigilantes are doing. The department also said it does not recommend that residents fix potholes themselves.
The Oakland City Council on Tuesday will decide it if wants to use $100 million of voter-approved Measure KK money for paving streets marred with potholes.
"Even just a million dollars, I think we could fill all the potholes in the city," one of the vigilantes said.
