#FixVicRoads: Wallan tyre expert explains cause of potholes, why tyres don’t survive them
Russell Pilven sees “potholed” tyres nearly everyday in his repair shop in Wallan. The government says flooding caused the road mess — but he says the issue runs much deeper. WATCH THE VIDEO
Victoria
Don't miss out on the headlines from Victoria. Followed categories will be added to My News.
In the workshop at Wallan Tyrepower, a brand new Mercedes C250 sits stripped of a wheel after a bungled trip along the highway.
In the words of store proprietor Russell Pilven, the car has “been potholed”.
“We get these almost every day of the week,” he says, poking his fingers through a gaping hole in the tyre.
“Some weeks we get well over 10 tyres, all wheels destroyed by the potholes.”
The potholes in the area are so relentless the Mercedes’ tyre instantly deflated at impact, Mr Pilven explains, costing the driver between $500 and $600 for a replacement.
“Even before they get much time to pull up, the tyre self destructs,” Mr Pilven says.
“It’s a very dangerous situation, and unfortunately, very common.”
Mr Pilven says his business saw a “dramatic increase” in repairs due to road conditions after the area was smashed by flooding in 2022 and again in 2024 — but it’s not the floods alone at fault, he says.
“The roads were already in poor condition,” Mr Pilven says.
“It seems a little crack in the road is a small problem, but once you get water in there, and then you get trucks pounding that water, it separates the bitumen from the dirt — that comes apart.”
The pothole plugging blitz spruiked by the Allan government in its latest budget won’t save commuters money when it comes to repairs, Mr Pilven says.
“What needs to happen, Victoria can’t afford to happen,” he says.
“We need proper subterraneal repairs on the roads, which cost millions and millions of dollars, and we’re bankrupt.”
Can I be compensated for pothole damage?
The Department of Transport does, in some cases, compensate drivers for pothole damage from roads under its jurisdiction.
But, as stated on its website, the DTP is not liable for damage to cars or vehicles caused by the condition of the road that is less or equal to the threshold of $1640.
It means if a driver hit a pothole and saw damages to their tyres and rim, but the cost of repairs was less than $1640, the state would not compensate the driver for damages.
In the case damages did equal $1640 or more, DTP would consider that claim, but would only be liable to pay the difference. For example, if repairs cost $1700, DTP would only need to pay the driver $60.
The broken roads of Wallan
It’s a task to drive through Wallan without hitting a pothole.
Sick and tired of being overlooked and forgotten, locals took matters into their own hands and planted a tree in a pothole at a major intersection in town back in 2023 in an effort to see their roads finally fixed.
Two years later, the former home of the ‘Wallan Botanic Gardens’ on the state-operated Northern Hwy is still swallowing unsuspecting tyres after a series of failed “Band-Aid fixes”.
Craters have been left to fester for months through the main crawl of Wallan, circled in bright red paint and crumbling under the weight of B-doubles heading through town.
Long-time resident Keith Kelly said the government had let population grow exponentially in Wallan and surrounds without keeping infrastructure up to speed.
“These people take their lives into their own hands,” he said of families heading home from school.
“It’s not just finances of a car — it’s humans, people. They can get injured, killed by a pothole.”
Residents like Mr Kelly are fuming — but still the Department of Transport boasted its maintenance crews were out inspecting the Northern Hwy “at least once a week”.
“In the two years to May 2025, we’ve repaired more than 109 potholes and completed more than 2299 square metres of repair works on the Northern Highway through Wallan.”
Meanwhile, its the same sorry story at Duke St just a minute up the road near Wallan Secondary College.
The Herald Sun reported on the enormous collection of potholes on the Mitchell Shire council-operated street six months ago, but still, parents have to rattle through the road ravines while picking their children up from school.
But council said the potholes fell within five-metres from the give way line, and therefore referred the issue to the Department of Transport to fix them.
The council also infuriated residents when it dropped the speed limit of another notoriously potholed street, Darraweit Rd/William St, from 80km/h to 60km/h “to reduce risk of crashes”.
Council’s $2.7m rehabilitation project for the road is set to be completed by the end of 2025.
Heading toward Melbourne, drivers also have to watch for major corrugations along the Hume Hwy.
Many potholes have recently been patched — but drivers still try to avoid the left lane near Beveridge due to a nasty extension joint at the bridge over Lithgow St.
A similar bridge issue this week brought traffic to a standstill at the Princes Fwy after a metal plate dislodged, leaving the extension completely exposed.
It resulted in a collision involving five vehicles, including a truck.
Join the Herald Sun’s Fix Victorian Roads movement by using the hashtag #FixVicRoads on social media.
Originally published as #FixVicRoads: Wallan tyre expert explains cause of potholes, why tyres don’t survive them
The real reason Victoria’s roads will continue to deteriorate
A shockingly low amount of road repairs will be carried out in Victoria this year, despite a record funding boost by the Allan government. Here’s why.
It’s official: Marvel Stadium is one of the world’s best
Marvel Stadium has ranked as the fifth best sport and entertainment venues in the world for the first time — toppling the mighty MCG. See what made the list.