Arnold Schwarzenegger Fills ‘Giant Pothole,' But City of LA Says It Was Trench Being Used by Gas Co.

Arnold Schwarzenegger's heart was in the right place, but it appears his shovel was in a service trench being used by the gas company.

The actor and former California governor posted video of the repairs on what he said was a "giant pothole" in Brentwood, a reasonable assumption after months of rain in Southern California left Los Angeles street crews with a long to-do list. The city of LA has received 19,642 pothole repair service requests since the end of December, officials said last week.

Today, after the whole neighborhood has been upset about this giant pothole that’s been screwing up cars and bicycles for weeks, I went out with my team and fixed it. I always say, let’s not complain, let’s do something about it. Here you go. pic.twitter.com/aslhkUShvT

— Arnold (@Schwarzenegger) April 11, 2023

In a tweet, Schwarzenegger, 75, said the large hole in the street plagued drivers and bicyclists for weeks. The video showed the men using patching materials to fill the hole. At one point, a driver stops to thank Schwarzenegger, who was wearing wrap-around shades and a leather jacket.

"Today, after the whole neighborhood has been upset about this giant pothole that’s been screwing up cars and bicycles for weeks, I went out with my team and fixed it," Schwarzenegger tweeted. "I always say, let’s not complain, let’s do something about it. Here you go."

But after video of the well-intentioned repair work was posted, the Los Angeles Department of Public Works told NBCLA the hole actually wasn't a pothole.

"This location is not a pothole," a spokesperson told NBCLA. "It’s a service trench that relates to active, permitted work being performed at the location by SoCal Gas, who expects the work to be completed by the end of May.

"As is the case with similar projects impacting City streets, SoCal Gas will be required to repair the area once their work is completed."

It’s always important to take bureaucratic damage control with a grain of salt. First, they implied @schwarzenegger paved over active gas work that would finish at the end of May. Then, the truth came out: the gas work was done in January (and the timeline for paving sped up). pic.twitter.com/37jCGFx85L

— Daniel Ketchell (@ketch) April 13, 2023

It was not immediately clear whether the hole Schwarzenegger filled in was scheduled for repair. SoCal Gas did not immediately respond to a request late Tuesday for comment to confirm whether the trench was still in use.

Daniel Ketchell, a spokesperson for Schwarzenegger, said Brentwood residents made repeated requests for repairs to the road since a series of winter storms in February and March.

How Potholes Form

Potholes typically form when water sinks into cracks in asphalt, then soaked up by the mixture of rock, gravel and sand supporting the street.

The weight of cars passing over the road force water through the roadbed, causing erosion. Asphalt then sinks into the eroded areas and cracked under the weight of passing cars.

That's when chunks of the road come loose and a pothole forms. The hole can be filled with