SOLON, Ohio — Solon residents are looking to be reimbursed after claiming driving through the Aurora Road (State Route 43) construction project damaged their tires.
"There was a large bolt in the side wall of the tire," city resident Dan Feiwell told 3News of his situation. "It was not replaceable, so we had to get the new tire."
Both Feiwell and another resident, David Gitson, say they paid hundreds of dollars to replace tires they believed were damaged after their cars went through the construction zone in Solon.
Crews are widening and reconstructing a 1.1-mile stretch of Aurora Road between SOM Center Road (State Route 91) and Andre Lane. A portion of the project also impacts Liberty Road where it intersects Aurora Road.
"Originally, we just figured it was, you know, we got a nail in the tire. That happens," Feiwell said regarding his wife's experience earlier this month driving north on Liberty Road crossing SOM Center. "When we saw something on the community Facebook page, we were kind of shocked. We were like, 'Hey, that happened to us,' and we're surprised it happened to so many people."
Just recently, people began posting their flat tires on social media.
"There were scores of people experiencing the same problem I had," Gitson said.
As of Monday, 14 people responded to a poll in the private Solon Community Group on Facebook indicating they had suffered flat tires after driving through the Aurora Road construction zone, with some saying they noticed either a nail, screw, or metal object had damaged their tires.
"If you had 12 accidents at SOM and Aurora, you would see them [the city] changing the light patterns," Gitson argued. "You'll see all kinds of things happening, but with this, you know, there's nothing."
In an email to 3News, Solon Associate Law Director Sarah H. Kostura wrote:
"To date, the City of Solon has received a total of ten flat tire claims related to the Aurora Road project, each of which the City has forwarded on to the contractor of the work. Four of the flat tire claims were forwarded to Dominion Energy as the claims were made during the utility relocation work for the Aurora Road project. The remaining six flat tire claims were forwarded to Tri Mor construction.
"All claims received by the City related to damage incurred by motorist from the Aurora Road project are, and will be, sent to the contractor."
Kostura also says the city regularly inspects the zone and advises the contractor accordingly. Tri Mor Road Builders out of Twinsburg is the contractor for the project. According to the city, "the safety of the zone is ultimately the responsibility of the contractor."
Tri Mor sent the following statement to 3News regarding issues with flat tires on Aurora Rd:
"Tri-Mor is committed to providing safe construction zones for vehicles driving through our active road reconstruction projects. We advise all motorists to adhere to the posted signage, to drive carefully over all uneven surfaces and road plates, and to be mindful of pre-existing road issues in and about the construction zone. We have and will continue to address and remedy any legitimate and substantiated vehicle damage claims a motorist suffers in our construction zone through no fault of their own."
Drivers can file a claim here.
"Yeah, I will be approaching the city and asking them to pay," Feiwell said. "People understand that road construction is part of the deal … but I think more than anything, I think the residents want the city to hold the contractor accountable."