Breakdowns caused by potholes up by a third in a year

THE number of pothole-related breakdowns has increased by nearly a third in a year, according to the AA.

Callouts from drivers who have had their cars damaged by poor road surfaces reached 52,070 last month, an increase of 29 per cent on April 2022.

Across the first four months of this year, the number of pothole-related callouts across the UK was up by a quarter, with 215,630 breakdowns.

The AA has warned that if the number of callouts continues on the same trajectory, 2023 could be the second worst year for pothole-related breakdowns since records began in 2017.

It called on drivers to make 2023 “The Year of the Pothole” and urged them to alert local authorities when they saw damaged road surfaces.

Jack Cousens, head of roads policy for the AA, said: “The pothole pandemic looks set to remain for quite some time, with little hope of a cure on the horizon.

“On safety grounds alone, we need to do all we can to shine a light on the awful condition of UK roads.”

It would cost £12.6 billion to fix the potholes on all of England’s roads and take nine years to clear, according to the Asphalt Industry Alliance’s (AIA) annual alarm survey.

The report also found that a fifth of all roads could be undriveable in the next five years if the crisis is not addressed.

In addition to council budget shortfalls, a particularly hot summer last year, followed by periods of extremely cold weather in the winter, has worsened the state of the roads.

Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor, announced in March he would be providing councils with an additional £200 million this year to fix the pothole crisis. This came on top of the Government’s annual £500 million pothole fund.

However, experts fear this will not be enough to significantly improve roads.

Rick Green, chairman of the AIA, said the extra cash covered just 20 per cent of the average shortfall faced by local authorities.