Pothole teams doubled in bid to repair East Yorkshire's battered roads
POTHOLE response teams have been doubled in a bid to repair the region's battered roads.
East Riding Council has increased the level of inspections with eight response teams tackling potholes after the wettest year on record in England.
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Concerns: Residents of Dene Road, Cottingham, are concerned about the potholes that keep appearing in their road. From left, Cllr Geraldine Mathieson with Ian Carr, Barbara Hoggarth and Cllr Ros Jump. Picture: Jerome Ellerby
With the council responsible for the maintenance of 3,500km of highway network, people are being asked to report any pothole problems.
Nigel Leighton, director of environment and neighbourhood services at East Riding Council, said: "The infrastructure of the East Riding is a top priority for the council, with the highway network being vital for the local economy and the travelling public.
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"The authority takes a pro- active approach to the upkeep of its highways through extensive surface dressing programmes.
"We respond to hundreds of reports of potholes every year.
"Residents can report potholes to the council via the website or by calling the highways customer care line."
The council received 2,000 calls from people regarding potholes last year, each of which was inspected.
It is anticipated potholes will continue to be reported and repaired for the next two to three months, largely depending on the weather conditions.
The council, with the help of continuing inspections, will continue to work towards a programme of permanent repairs and resurfacing during the coming months.
Despite welcoming the increase in the pothole response teams, Geraldine Mathieson, councillor for Cottingham North, has her concerns.
She said: "East Riding has always been underfunded and the council covers a huge length of highway, so I just don't think there will be enough money to deal with all the potholes.
"There is a huge backlog of repairs, from the bad winter last year to even dating back to the 2007 floods.
"The damage is long term, of which the effect is only becoming visible now.
"It is damage to the foundation of the roads, which is an expensive problem."
Councillor Mathieson says several stretches of cracked concrete road outside her Cottingham home in Dene Road are making it increasingly hard to drive down.
She said: "The concrete plates have shifted, which has damaged them.
"It isn't just in Cottingham, but all over the East Riding. I was driving near Burton Fleming on a minor road and it was like driving through a minefield driving around some great big craters.
"I am appalled East Riding Council is spending £2.5m on removing the cobbles in Beverley's Saturday Market.
"I'm sure that money could be spent on the wider area repairing potholes."
Residents are being asked to report potholes by visiting www. eastriding.gov.uk/environment/roads-streets-traffic-and-parking/ roads-pavements-and-traffic or by calling 0845 6001666.
Comments
by bevman
Wednesday, January 09 2013, 5:58PM
“So pothole teams are doubled. Tory councillors complain of potholes. Yet which party has run this council since 1997, the Tories. Which party has voted to spend £2,500,000 on ripping up Beverleys historic cobbles, the money coming from the roads budget, the Tories.
Did there 2 Tories vote to spending such vast sums on Saturday market? Did they put a motion to council asking for the setts to be saved and the money spent repairing roads, NO.
Its wasting public funds, which at the moment in times of supposed austerity should be better spent. Which ever councillor (Parnaby. Who doesn't represent the ward. Nor does he live in the ward or town. Neither does he live in the constituency) came up with the plan should resign immediately and those who supported the idea should be named and shamed. Please, HDM list the councillors who supported this waste of £2,500,000 from the roads budget. Yet Tory Cllrs in Cottingham are complaining of pot holes, did they support the proposed vandalism of the heart of Beverley? Councillors need to justify why they can spend such vast sums here while the roads are in such disrepair, which the council do know about as they started more pothole spotting teams!”
by YorkieTed
Wednesday, January 09 2013, 3:25PM
“Its time HCC did the same thing, there's some potholes on Bellfield ave that are deep enough to lose a small child in, plus its very dimply lit down there at night time, the first time you know the pot holes are there is when you hit them.”
by Adam089
Wednesday, January 09 2013, 2:17PM
“The roads are an absolute disgrace and some of the repairs they're doing are rubbish! The work will just pop out again when the weather changes. I bought myself a new car in November and potholes are already causing squeaks and rattles in the cabin!”
by fairway1
Wednesday, January 09 2013, 1:26PM
“Legal_Driver has hit the nail on the head there.
The standard of repairs made by ERYCC and Hull council are absolutely terrible, time & time again.
No action is taken when they can see a particular section of road is beginning to either crack / break up or sag, they have to leave it until there's a great pot hole before anyone does anything about it.
It's not rocket science, but our two councils seem to make such a mess of the maintenance our road network.”
by CarmellaBrown
Wednesday, January 09 2013, 1:12PM
“They can do this all of a sudden, it still doesnt justifie what they are spendding in beverley”
by Legal_Driver
Wednesday, January 09 2013, 10:44AM
“Having seen the pothole repairs done in my street they may as well not have bothered. Just threw a bit of tarmac into the hole and leveled it - it will come out again when we get the first frosty weather.”