Learners ‘must spot potholes’
THEY are the scourge of motorists, responsible for endless damage to tyres, wheels and car suspensions.
Now the AA says that the nation’s pothole problem is so serious that learner drivers should have to prove they can spot them to pass the test.
The motoring organisation wants poor road surfaces to be included in the hazard perception test, which is part of the theory driving test, because of the damage they cause to vehicles.
It also called for advice to drivers on what to do when they encounter a pothole to be added to the Highway Code.
Around 53,531 pot holes were reported to Scots councils last year.
Drivers contacted their local council at a rate of one ca;; every three minutes.
And with the Beast from the East wreaking havoc on roads and motorways at the start of 2018, many councils face an uphill struggle to repair every pothole recorded. A survey of driving instructors highlighted the problems that potholes cause them and their pupils.
AA president Edmund King said: ‘It is a sad indictment of our poor road conditions that instructors are having to adapt their lessons to avoid potholed roads.
‘More troubling is the fact that lessons and tests are being abandoned because of pothole-related breakdowns.
‘The situation is so serious that the hazard perception test and Highway Code need to change to reflect the state of the roads that learner drivers have to learn on.’
The Government said the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency keeps the driving test under constant review to make it as effective as possible.