Town’s potholed roads ‘still worse than Russia’
CAMPAIGNER hoping to rid Burton of its pothole problem maintains that roads in her homeland in Russia are still much better and safer despite the harsh conditions there in winter.
Olga Glass has fought for years for better roads in Burton, claiming how dangerous they are as they continue to erode and crumble in many places underneath the weight of the number of vehicles constantly passing over.
She has contacted highways authority Staffordshire County Council numerous times over the years over problems in various roads. And the Russian says things get fixed quicker in her homeland, where temperatures can drop to as low as –15C.
The Burton Mail has taken a close look at just a few of the roads in Burton to see how bad the potholes are, with Wetmore Road being one of the worst.
These are only a few of the streets and you may know of other big potholes in the town. If so, take a picture and send it to jennifer.moody@ reachplc.com, telling us where it is and how bad it is.
Mrs Glass previously said the roads in Burton are worse than her homeland – something she says she stands by.
She said: “I am maintaining my previous statement that roads in Kemerovo [a Russian city], Siberia and [the rest of ]
Russia are in much better and safer state and authorities are more approachable and willing to make roads even better and safer. One can simply pick up the phone and report a road defect directly to the authority and it is dealt with quite promptly. Modern machinery is used to repair roads.
“I strongly believe that the people of Burton upon Trent deserve better, safer and fit-for-purpose roads.
“We know where potholes are. We brace ourselves when driving on the roads yet we still hit them and in some cases damage our cars. That is what happened to me last February.” She went on to claim: “Staffordshire County Council has neglected the roads in Burton. I don’t understand what is going on as the roads are just horrendous and crumbling. During lockdown, I hit a pothole in Lichfield
Street and the suspension went. It cost £700 to repair.
“The roads are just not fit for purpose.”
David Williams, cabinet member for highways and transport at Staffordshire County Council, said: “We know that pota
holes are a concern to people and our highways crews make every effort to fix them as soon as possible.
“We do have a huge road network here in Staffordshire, with around 6,000km (3,728 miles) of roads and last year our crews fixed around 30,000 potholes. All reported road defects are inspected as soon as possible and assessed for their severity. Any defect which poses an immediate risk is dealt with as a priority and we aim to repair dangerous potholes within seven days. Lesser priority repairs are carried out when resources are available. Anyone with concerns about potholes can report them on the Mystaffs App or at www.staff ordshire.gov. uk.”