(PHOTO AND STORY: KHQ.COM)
Snow is finally out of the picture in Spokane. But the sand and gravel that has been left behind to treat the snowy roads is not, which is causing havoc to drivers' windshields. Just ask Fong Vue over at Spokane Quick Lube who also repairs chipped windshields.
"It's actually popping right now a lot. Big increase," Vue said.
This month alone, the shop has repaired over 50 windshield chips on cars. Which is way up from the 20 to 30 they repair in a typical month. They are expecting larger numbers for chip repairs in April.
"We're expecting to do 60-70 next month," Vue said.
On Southeast Boulevard on the South Hill, all the leftover gravel from a massive pothole is curb high and they aren't the small stones. "I think they should clean it up. I think they should because it's dangerous people on bicycles could accidentally hurt themselves," said Virginia Strong.
Loose gravel and sand isn't the only debris that is littering Spokane streets. Cans, plastic bottles, car parts, and decomposed leaves from last fall are still on the road. But in downtown Spokane, Virginia thinks that the streets are fairly clean.
The city is in a catch 22 because crews who clean the streets also fill potholes. With all the potholes Spokane has to fill, street sweeping right now is challenging. The city says its doing its best to keep up with everything that's on its plate.
A city spokesperson said that they had three sweepers out Wednesday sweeping some of the main roads to get loose gravel off the streets.