Concern over pothole checks
DRIVER’S DOUBTS AFTER 30 HE REPORTED WERE DISMISSED AS ‘FINE’ ONLY HOURS LATER
A NOTTINGHAMSHIRE resident has raised concerns after potholes he reported to council bosses were allegedly checked within a matter of hours.
Colin Smith, 39, of Kirkby-in-ashfield, reported almost 30 potholes to Nottinghamshire County Council on Wednesday, November 23, but fears some were inspected incorrectly or not at all.
Of these potholes reported, 10 were on the A38 and another 17 were on various roads across Kirkbyin-ash-field and Sutton-in-ashfield.
Colin said: “It’s an online system, where you go online and drop a pin on a map, give a brief description of what the issue is and you can add a photo. I think I reported ten on the A38, just on a short stretch.
“Within I think three hours of me reporting them, all the emails came back to say they have been to inspect them, it’s absolutely fine, there are no issues and no repairs to be carried out. I was a bit unsure how they have inspected them as I reported them when it was dark.
“I saw them during the day, and it was later that afternoon that I reported them.
“How they have managed to inspect the A38 in rush-hour when it’s dark and say they are fine, I don’t know, but it doesn’t sit right.”
He added: “The roads were wet yesterday, which makes them darker than normal, so how have they seen the potholes on a dark road and measured them and say they are fine, they are within the tolerances.”
He said the ten potholes on the A38 were the ones that were marked off within hours, despite being “much worse than the smaller holes” he had reported on local roads.
In addition to the potholes on the A38, Colin explained there were also potholes on the B6018 Sutton Road. He added: “There are two roads that I travel on in particular everyday, and they are absolute shocking, it’s like avoid the hole as you are driving.
“It’s just the Ashfield roads in general, Sutton, Kirkby, Selston, they are just really quite poor.” Following Colin’s concerns, Gary Wood, head of highways and transport at Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “We’d like to thank the resident for sending the reports to us.
“Works were already planned to take place on the A38 last week. Due to the nature of the road, these were completed overnight and included repairs to a number of potholes, along with eight gullies.
“Our inspectors did visit Chapel Street, Church Street and Sutton Road following the resident’s reports. While no potholes were identified that needed immediate repairs, we are aware of deterioration to the road surface at these locations and they are being considered for potential future schemes.”