Smoother ride ahead for Aurora drivers -- thanks to The Hartford

With the season's first freeze expected this weekend, Aurora got a head start filling potholes Wednesday with help from an unlikely friend.

The Hartford Financial Services Group paid $1,173 to cover the cost of materials, labor and time for two city crews to spend all day repairing streets.

Labor supervisor Jesse Saltijeral said one truck spent the day downtown while the other covered outlying areas.

"I get about 15 complaint calls a day regarding potholes so we maintain a list and try to take care of them immediately," he said. "Each truck today should fill between 200 and 300 potholes if the weather continues to cooperate."

Hartford Senior Vice President Patrick Walsh said the company tries to find ways to be a good neighbor in communities where it has branches. After reviewing Hartford's 2009 drivability study for Chicago and its suburbs, Walsh said filling potholes seemed to be a great idea.

"That study told us that 77 percent of residents in Chicagoland rated well-maintained roads as very important," Walsh said. "And 84 percent of those people told us they would rather drive on a smooth, well-paved road, but with stop-and-go traffic, than a street full of potholes, but with no traffic."

Mayor Tom Weisner stopped by the intersection of Broadway and Benton to thank Walsh but stopped short of grabbing a shovel, joking that doing so would cause a problem with the union.

"As a city, we paved a record 63 lane miles this year so we certainly appreciate Hartford helping us maintain that and get a jump-start on pothole season," Weisner said.

Walsh agreed that it may seem odd that a company that sells auto insurance would be working to reduce claims, but said potholes are both a frustration and safety hazard for all drivers.

"The bottom line is that this will hopefully help everyone," Walsh said. "Fewer losses ultimately means lower rates for everyone, so that's what we're working toward."

The Hartford Pothole Patrol will be paying for potholes to be filled Thursday in Evanston before taking the initiative to Arizona next week.