Modern Techniques for Pothole Detection: A Comprehensive Review

¹ Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, Sona College of Technology, (Anna University, Chennai). Salem, 636005, India.
² Department of Aeronautical Engineering, Jawaharlal College of Engineering and Technology, Palakkad, 679301, India.

^* Corresponding author: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Published online: 3 August 2026

Abstract

Potholes represent one of the major types of issues that affect road safety and maintenance enterprises, which contribute to the increase in the cost of road maintenance. Manual detection methods are also not very effective and are very labour intensive and so new technologies are needed. This study reviews the recent advancements in system for pothole repairs, detection – using image recognition, laser scanning, vehicle sensors, crowdsourcing, satellite imagery and even sensors in the road. There are several types of approaches that each of the methods delves into, those being advantages, limitations, and integration into smart cities systems. The case studies and applications. The tools and technologies presented in the paper show that these are good enough to improve the road safety and efforts for maintenance and further integration into the smart cities prepared. Finally, the future trends and challenges in pothole detection technologies are discussed.