State of winter roads a ‘disgrace’
PKC blasted over lack of grit and potholes
A Perth man has slammed the council’s lack of winter maintenance on roads and pavements as the city continues to shiver in sub-zero temperatures.
Ronnie Hutcheson, of Walnut Grove, branded the situation “an absolute disgrace.”
He said he was “appalled” at the condition of roads in the area - and highlighted an increasing number of potholes which are making driving conditions downright dangerous.
He also attacked the lack of gritting earlier this month when pavements were turned into skating rinks.
“Pedestrians were risking life and limb in such treacherous conditions,” he fumed.
“I also saw some people taking their lives in their hands by walking on busy roads because the pavements were an absolute hazard.”
The 60-year-old said: “As a Perth resident, I am appalled at the deteriorating condition of the roads, some of which are main arteries.
“Travelling around the city centre I have noticed that the number of potholes and uneven road surfaces is growing at a really alarming rate.
“They are an accident waiting to happen and the council should be ashamed at their deteriorating condition.
“In the past, when the council eventually got around to fixing these, it only seemed to be a temporary measure.
“After a few months they were back to being worse than ever.”
Ronnie explained that he has had personal experience of “falling victim” to one of the many potholes.
“After gathering lots of evidence, I submitted a compensation claim to the council. But lo and behold, it was refused,” he said.
“In my opinion the council was clearly to blame as that particular pothole had been reported to them prior to my incident.
“I was only out of pocket for the cost of a new tyre. But the damage could have been much worse - and it could have resulted in a nasty accident.”
Ronnie pointed said there are “numerous” manhole covers sinking around the city, causing many uneven surfaces.
He added: “Some of the locations where repairs are urgently required are on Dundee Road, next to the Isle of Skye Hotel; the end of the Queen’s Bridge; the Dundee slip road where it meets the Perth slip road, coming off the Friarton Bridge; Glasgow Road, at Charlotte Gate - as well as many more.”
A spokesperson for Perth and Kinross Counncil said the authority has an inspection and defect repair policy which defines defects.
They added: “Of those highlighted that require repair, there is a project to resurface and repair a depressed gully frame and cover outside Isle of Skye that encompasses a defect at that end of the bridge, those on the slip roads and coming off Friarton Bridge may be on the trunk road network, Glasgow Road at Charlotte Gate is a developer responsibility and we will take it up with them.
“However, if the gentlemen who raised his concerns would like to provide additional information then this would be helpful.
“Perth and Kinross Council is fully committed to winter maintenance operations and uses the same resources available to repair potholes, therefore in the current weather conditions there will be a delay in getting to those most recently appearing on the network.”
On the issue of gritting streets, the spokesperson added: “In such challenging conditions, the council, with limited resources, must prioritise the routes and footways that it treats.
“Therefore, we cannot move on to lesser categories of winter routes until the higher category routes have been treated, hence the footway into Perth receiving no treatment.
“Information on categories of routes etc for winter can be found on the PKC website.
“In these tough situations the council relies heavily on the support and cooperation of residents, and it would like to thank the hundreds of volunteers who recognise the challenges that the council faces and wish to lend a hand to do their bit for their community.”
Defects on the road network can be reported direct to the council’s customer service centre on 01738 476476.
Pedestrians were risking life and limb in such treacherous conditions