Bristol named England’s pothole capital with 4 in 5 roads damaged

BRISTOL has been named England’s pothole capital – with nearly 80 per cent of roads needing work.

Research has mapped out which councils are falling behind on road repairs.

The Daily Mail is campaigning for an end to Britain’s pothole plague, which costs drivers millions and puts cyclists at risk.

Councils maintain most roads in their areas, while National Highways handles motorways and major A roads.

But the comparison site Comparethemarket has revealed a pothole postcode lottery, with Bristol seeing the highest proportion of run- down roads. Some 78.5 per cent – or nearly four in five – require work now or in the near future, but just 0.4 per cent would see such work done by the end of this month under current plans. Blackburn with Darwen’s roads were the second worst in England, with 76 per cent requiring improvement, while Cheshire West and Chester were third with 72 per cent. Redcar and Cleveland had the best- kept roads, with more than 90 per cent in good condition.

Nicholas Lyes, head of roads policy at the RAC, said: ‘As councils struggle to balance the books as their budgets dwindle, it’s clear that in some parts of the country it’s the roads that lose out.’

Bristol City Council said it would need more time to analyse the data, but added that an extra £2.5million would be put towards its pothole fund for the next financial year. David Renard, transport spokesman for the Local Government Association, said: ‘There are many reasons for differences in the condition of local roads, including the age of the road network, weather impacts, how regularly it is used or if it is dug up by utility companies. Current funding levels are already insufficient, and the impacts of inflation will lead to a worsening of roads.’