On the left, before. On the right, after.

On Monday, January 26, 2026, I’d finally decided to do something. I’ve been having to try to remember to avoid a ‘pothole’ every time I went through the intersection of Mooney and Visalia Parkway. In the westbound lane, I’d more often than not “thump thump” as I was returning home from Costco or Lowe’s. I kept thinking, “they really need to fix that. Don’t Caltrans people ever drive through this intersection? It’s been like this for months! When are they going to fix it??”

When it became clear that they remained blissfully unaware of this nuisance, I decided I would have to report it myself. So I did.

The repair is not perfect, but it is better than it was.

Thank you for taking the time to send Caltrans a Customer Service Request and for helping the Department repair California’s aging transportation infrastructure. Caltrans staff will send an email to the address you used to contact us, confirming that we received this highway service request, with a confirmation number for the job. We handle service requests Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will address this as soon as possible.

If you need to talk to us about this, please call 916-654-2852. If this is an emergency, please call 911 or the highway patrol.

We sincerely appreciate your concern and request. Thank you for letting Caltrans staff know about the issue so we can repair it as soon as possible.
Type of Situation:Roadway – Pothole
CSR Ticket Number:1146688
Date Submitted:2026-01-26 16:16:51
California County:Tulare
State Highway Route:63
Direction of Travel:Northbound
Nearest Cross Street:Visalia Parkway
Nearest Town or City:Visalia
Mode of Transportation:Car
Date & Time Situation Noticed:2026-01-26   4 pm – 5 pm
Nature of Situation:Pavement around the sewer/stormdrain manhole cutout has eroded, leaving a large ‘pothole’ type situation around the manhole cover. Asphalt replacement around the cover is needed to restore a smooth travel surface.
Geographic Location of Situation:Northbound SR 63 at Visalia Parkway, northeast side of the intersection, affecting traffic westbound in the right lane of Visalia Parkway.
Your Email Address:jim.visalia@gmail.com
Your Name:Jim Reeves
Your Phone Number:559-xxx-xxxx

As you can see, I submitted the “ticket” at 4:16pm on Monday, 1/26/26.

I got this response the next day:

Situation Acknowledged. Will be addressed.
Additional Message:
CSR Ticket Number:1146688
Commit/No Commit:commit
Date Submitted:2026-01-26 16:16:51
California County:Tulare
State Highway Route:63
Nearest Town or City:Visalia
Nearest Cross Street:Visalia Parkway
Mode of Transportation:Car
Direction of Travel:Northbound
Date & Time Situation Noticed:2026-01-26   4 pm – 5 pm
Type of Situation:Roadway – Pothole
Nature of Situation:Pavement around the sewer/stormdrain manhole cutout has eroded, leaving a large ‘pothole’ type situation around the manhole cover. Asphalt replacement around the cover is needed to restore a smooth travel surface.
Geographic Location of Situation:Northbound SR 63 at Visalia Parkway, northeast side of the intersection, affecting traffic westbound in the right lane of Visalia Parkway.
Your Email Address:jim.visalia@gmail.com

Then, on Thursday, 1/29/26, I got this email:

Your concern as submitted in the Customer Service Request has been addressed, and your ticket has been closed. For more information regarding your CSR, please see the “Additional Closing Message” in this email. Thank you for using the Caltrans web site to notify us of your concern. At Caltrans we’re here to get you there. If you have any questions, please call our District Office at (559) 444-2518.
Message from Customer Service Liaison:
CSR Ticket Number:1146688
Date Submitted:2026-01-26 16:16:51
Date Completed:2026-01-29 00:00:00
California County:Tulare
State Highway Route:63
Nearest Town or City:Visalia
Nearest Cross Street:Visalia Parkway
Mode of Transportation:Car
Direction of Travel:Northbound
Date & Time Situation Noticed:2026-01-26   4 pm – 5 pm
Type of Situation:Roadway – Pothole
Description of Situation:Pavement around the sewer/stormdrain manhole cutout has eroded, leaving a large ‘pothole’ type situation around the manhole cover. Asphalt replacement around the cover is needed to restore a smooth travel surface.
Geographic Location of Situation:Northbound SR 63 at Visalia Parkway, northeast side of the intersection, affecting traffic westbound in the right lane of Visalia Parkway.
Your Email Address:jim.visalia@gmail.com

I drove over to the intersection to check on the results. (It’s not that I don’t trust them, but a while back you might recall an incident with some gopher holes in a softball field. The “it’s fixed” notification didn’t reflect reality. It took a few times to actually fix the problem, But I digress.) Hey, Mikey! They fixed it! (See the picture on the right, above.)

Thanks to Caltrans region 6 for the prompt response and repair.

If you know of a problem with a road or highway that is maintained by Caltrans, you can report it here:

https://csr.dot.ca.gov/index.php/Msrsubmit