It’s Time to Bring This Amazing Idea to the Hudson Valley

It's officially spring in the Hudson Valley, even though it's hard to tell with the freezing temperatures that continue to plague the area. While the weather might be awful, it actually could be the perfect time to try a truly brilliant (although most likely illegal) idea.

Each year, the thawing snow and ice seem to attack our local roads like clockwork, creating potholes that could easily be confused with craters. What can be even more frustrating is that it often takes weeks (or longer) before they're fixed.

How to Report Potholes in the Hudson Valley

Of course there are ways to report potholes to local transportation departments, but when tempers boil over, residents of towns across the east coast often take matters into their own hands, like one hero did in 2023.

Read More: Is This the New Pothole Capital of the Hudson Valley?

"So someone in Hopewell decided they were sick and tired of this giant pothole in their road", a local resident shared on Facebook (below). What they did to call attention to the problem can only be described as out-of-the-box thinking.

Viral Pothole Photos Show a Planted Tree

The series of photos, which has been shared more than 54,000 times, shows a tree planted in a pothole in the middle of a residential street. The most impressive thing may not have been the tree, but what happened afterwards.

Read More: Worst Hudson Valley, New York Roads for Potholes in 2025

Though it might be difficult to prove that it was in fact the tree that caught the attention of the local transportation department, further photographs showed that within days, the tree was removed and the pothole was fixed.

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While these photos are from Hopewell, Virginia, the abundance of potholes currently wreaking havoc on Hudson Valley roads could easily inspire a local gardener to take matters into their own hands as well.

Since it is certainly frowned upon by local transportation departments, however, any would-be vigilante should at least try 1-800-POTHOLE first (yes, that's a real number).