Drivers left in despair as massive potholes ravage our rural roads
THESE photographs show the shocking state of Northern Ireland’s pothole-ravaged roads.
Winter has yet to arrive, but already drivers are facing chaos.
Rural areas are particularly badly hit, with one Armagh councillor taking to social media to highlight the poor condition of roads in his area.
SDLP councillor Thomas O’Hanlon posted photographs of roads at Derrynoose that had fallen into serious disrepair, and said many others were suffering neglect in areas like Middletown, Keady and Tassagh.
In some cases potholes several inches deep can be seen.
In others, large parts of the tarmac has been gouged out.
Mr O’Hanlon said the roads were particularly bad in rural areas, and that ratepayers are being “short-changed” when it comes to road repairs.
“If you talk to any representative in a border area you’ll hear the same thing,” he said. “As these are small back roads with a low volume of traffic, and they’re considered to be low priority.
“But this causes damage to cars and vehicles, and often you’ll find that those who live in rural areas will pay substantial rates, often higher than those in urban areas, but they aren’t getting the same government services.”
He added: “Local residents feel they’re getting short-changed. It’s not just the lack of repair and maintenance, but there’s also issues with drainage and water lying on the roads which only worsens the problem.”
Potholes are caused when water penetrates tiny cracks in the road. When it freezes, it expands, widening the cracks. When it melts, traffic thumps down on the space vacated by the ice and smashes new craters into the road surface.
As winter approaches, Mr O’Hanlon said roads could crumble even further.
After meeting with a section engineer from Department for Infrastructure Roads (formerly the Roads Service) on Friday, he was told efforts were being made to obtain investment locally.
In August, the Belfast Telegraph reported how £850,220 was paid out in compensation for vehicle damage in the last year.
Five years ago the figure was just £163,580.
The number of claims for damage has also risen considerably — from 599 in 2014/15 to over 3,000 in 2017/18.
That number fell slightly last year to 2,441, but the overall cost of the claims saw a sharp increase, although they can carry over from one financial year to the next before being settled.
Earlier this year a report revealed it would cost £1.2bn to bring our roads up to an acceptable standard.
The Northern Ireland Audit Office (NIAO) warned that spending on the road network here has been running around £50m per year less than what is required. It found that while the major network has been well cared for, minor roads in rural areas continue to deteriorate.
A DfI spokesperson said the department had explained to Mr O’Hanlon “that we are doing the best we can in the Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon council area with the limited resources that we have available”.
“It is worth pointing out that improvement schemes are currently being developed for the Tievnacree Road, Annvale Road, Drumgreenagh Road and Granemore Road while resurfacing schemes are being prepared for Madden Road and Tassagh Road. We do however need to be realistic. The Department continues to face significant budgetary pressures. This means we have to prioritise work accordingly by identifying those roads most in need of repair right across Northern Ireland.”
Have you seen a road in a worse condition? Contact digital. editorial@belfasttelegraph.co.uk