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Floods and freeze mean perfect storm for worst ever pothole season

Image of John Simpson
Author: | Updated: 13 Jan 2014 11:03

The UK is in for its worst ever pothole season, according to Potholes.co.uk. Local authorities have estimated that around 200,000 potholes will need repairing throughout Britain’s roads after parts of Southern England saw almost twice the amount expected rainfall in December.

Combine that with freezing conditions and you have “the perfect storm for a new plague of potholes”, says Warranty Direct’s road campaign website, Potholes.co.uk.

According to the motor warranty specialist, motorists paid out almost £730m in pothole-related repair bills in 2013, a 159% rise in three years, with an average of 6.6% of cars suffering axle or suspension damage linked to potholes or road defects between 2010 and 2013.

A pothole in the road

“Worst yet to come”

A spokesman for the company said: “This wet weather will be saturating roads right across the UK with existing potholes channelling water to weaken the road’s substructure, literally paving the way for even more potholes and defects to arise. The worst is yet to come.

“Potholes and other road defects can cause sudden jarring or regular jarring which accelerates wear and tear to axle and suspension components, often leading to failure. Damage to wheel rims and punctured tyres are also a common fault of potholes.”

The average repair bill for pothole-induced axle or suspension damage is £247 but the average cost for a council to repair a single pothole is only around £50.

A smartphone app was launched by the Department for Transport recently, designed to encourage motorists to report the location of potholes.

The Government filled over almost two million potholes in 2012 at a cost of £99m, averaging at £6.2m per authority.

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