Potholes in roads

Thank you for reporting potholes to us – this helps us to fix the most urgent road issues first.   

  • Extremely wet weather over winter has caused an unusually high number of potholes to form in both sealed and unsealed roads across Cardinia Shire.  
  • Unfortunately, we’re not alone with this issue – it’s one of the biggest issues being faced by councils right across Victoria. The state received almost 23% of its typical annual rainfall in August 2022. You’ll find some info on this page on why heavy rain makes it a real challenge to keep potholes at bay.
  • Road maintenance requests to Cardinia Shire Council have increased by more than 130% compared to 2021. There’s been about a 90% increase in the June, July and August periods compared to last year.  
  • It’s been difficult to keep up with the very high maintenance demands, and we know we’ve got lots of work to do to improve our roads. We’ve put extra resources into road maintenance and we’re working really hard to improve the roads – our crews fixed almost one-third of the year’s reported potholes in August alone. 
  • Not all local roads are Council roads. Before you report a road issue to us, we’d really appreciate it if you could please check if it’s a VicRoads road first. 
  • By August 2022, Council had fixed over 1100 potholes this calendar year. We fixed more than 300 potholes in sealed roads during August alone. 
  • We’ve deployed more sealed road maintenance trucks and our staff are working additional hours, including weekends. We’ve also engaged external contractors for extra support. 
  • We’re working to improve response times to pothole reports. On average, crews are actioning sealed road pothole defects within 5 days and unsealed road pothole defects within 17 days of them being inspected.
  • Please report potholes and other road issues. While we proactively inspect our roads, reporting potholes and other road issues helps us to prioritise our work.

Not all roads in Cardinia Shire are managed by Cardinia Shire Council.  

While we manage 1,1642km of sealed and unsealed roads around the shire, upgrades and maintenance to our freeways, highways, and many of our major arterial roads are often managed by the Department of Transport (VicRoads). 

Before you report a road issue to us, we’d really appreciate it if you could please check to make sure it’s a council road first. Major roads within the shire that are managed by VicRoads are listed below, and you can also use the interactive map below to check.  

  • If the issue is on a VicRoads road: Please report it to them by calling 13 11 70 (24 hours a day, 7 days a week) or visiting the VicRoads website.  
  • If the road is on a Council road: Please report it to us using the Report a road issue form or by calling 1300 787 624.   

Report a road issue to Council online 

   Roads managed by VicRoads include:

  • Old Princes Highway & Princes Hwy 
  • Princes Freeway (including most freeway overpasses) 
  • Healesville-Koo Wee Rup Rd 
  • Pakenham Rd 
  • Racecourse Rd 
  • Beaconsfield-Emerald Rd 
  • Beaconsfield-Nar Nar Goon Rd 
  • Gembrook Rd 
  • Cardinia Rd (Princes Hwy to Monash Fwy) 
  • Nar Nar Goon-Longwarry Rd 
  • Koo Wee Rup Rd 
  • Longwarry-Drouin Rd 
  • Drouin Rd 
  • Ballarto Rd 
  • Koo Wee Rup Rd 
  • Gembrook Rd 
  • Belgrave-Gembrook Rd 
  • McDonalds Track 
  • Westernport Rd 
  • Gembrook-Launching Place Rd 
  • Emerald-Monbulk Rd 
  • Wellington Rd 
  • Woori Yallock Rd 

View VicRoads info for the full list:

Visit the VicRoads website

  • Potholes are formed when water seeps into the road through a small hole or crack in the asphalt. This causes the foundation to wear away and shift.  
  • Traffic on wet roads increases the amount of water seeping into minor cracks on the road network, weakening the foundations, causing a shift, and creating potholes.  
  • The wet weather prevents us from making longer-term fixes to roads. For example, we can’t reconstruct the pavement under the surface, which makes the foundation stronger and prevents future potholes. 

Reconstruction works need dry weather to ensure all cracks can be sealed. A lot of the work we do during winter are temporary solutions until conditions allow for a more permanent fix. 

The Victorian Government’s Road Management Act 2004 governs how all Victorian road authorities, including local governments, are required to inspect and maintain the public road network.  

The Act states that local councils are not liable for the first $1,460 of damage caused by the conditions of roads or road infrastructure, which includes – but is not limited to – pothole damage. 

If you believe your vehicle has sustained damage due to a pothole on a Council road – and needs to be repaired for more than $1,460 – contact us to discuss your options.