North Somerset Council is working to repair potholes
across the district following the recent spell of cold
weather.
The number of potholes being reported has risen substantially since
the frosty weather hit, but the council encourages people to get in
touch to report any problems that they notice on the roads.
A complete survey of the road network is not possible due to
needing to fix the worst and most dangerous potholes as soon as
possible. The area officer team is carrying out additional
inspections on the roads across the area to identify any problems,
and the council is working closely with its contractors to make
sure that all available teams are carrying out repairs as quickly
as possible, with teams filling in between 10 and 20 potholes per
day.
Potholes are caused when water runs into hairline cracks in the
road surface and freezes, forcing the cracks further apart.
Highway authorities across the country are facing similar problems
after road surfaces were weakened by the cold weather before
Christmas, with problems made worse when snow hit early in the New
Year.
Cllr Elfan Ap Rees, deputy leader of the council and executive
member responsible for highways said: ‘The weather has not been
kind to our roads, but we have already been tackling the large
number of potholes that have appeared. It is frustrating
because we were beginning to get on top of the situation before the
cold weather. We would ask people to drive carefully on the
roads while we are still working to fix the problems.’ 477
defects were filled in between January 1 and June 1 last year,
compared with 351 for the same period in 2008.
To report a pothole contact Streets and Open Spaces on 01934 888
802 or email
streetsandopenspaces@n-somerset.gov.uk.
