Campaigners issue pothole warning
Added on Tuesday, December 7th, 2010 by Carole Nash Editor | No Comments
Campaigners issue pothole warning
Bikers and drivers have been urged to brace themselves for the “worst ever pothole season” according to one campaign group, with the recent cold snap likely to leave behind crumbling road surfaces.
Road maintenance campaign website, Potholes.co.uk, which allows motorists to report potholes to an online database, claims to have seen a 100% increase in web traffic during last week’s nationwide blanketing of snow, with twice as many visitors as the same week in 2009.
Warranty Direct, which runs the site, expects to see a sharp increase in claims for vehicle damage relating to potholes in the coming weeks.
In addition to broken road surfaces posing a very real danger to motorcyclists and vulnerable road users, estimates suggest that British motorists paid out £320m in pothole related repairs last year – a figure that could be dwarfed in 2010-11 as councils contend with reduced budgets.
“That figure could pail into insignificance,” warns Duncan McClure Fisher of Warranty Direct.
Potholes are caused by water or snow filling existing cracks in road surfaces and freezing. The expansion this causes breaks open the road, which is revealed when the ice melts. Repeated freeze-thaw cycles cause maximum damage.
“The roads are going to deteriorate incredibly quickly over the coming months. Given the severity and earlier than normal arrival of harsh wintry conditions, everything is pointing towards a miserable period for motorists.
“Local councils and Central Government have a duty of care to maintain the roads of Britain. Yet, with the extended period of cold weather and councils trimming budgets across the country, it’s hard to see how they will be able to tackle what points towards being the worst ever pothole season.”
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