So many journeys taken across the UK at the moment will see you driving past at least one pothole. The scale of the problem has become so large that the government is now very aware of it.
For instance, Chancellor Philip Hammond acknowledged in the 2018 Budget that £420 million is being allocated to local councils throughout this financial year. These funds are will be used in an attempt to fix potholes within each local council’s constituency — and is on top of an existing fund that is made up of close to £300 million.
“£420 million to tackle potholes might seem like throwing big money at a relatively minor issue. But it’s a common problem for many drivers who have to fork out cash because their cars are damaged by poor roads,” pointed out money.co.uk’s Editor in Chief Hannah Maundrell once Mr Hammond had delivered his Budget 2018 speech.
“This will be welcome news too for insurance companies who foot a large chunk of the bill.”
Should potholes be treated as more of a major issue now though? Also, just how far will the funds go to solving the problem? After all, the Asphalt Industry Alliance’s chairman Rick Green pointed out in March following a local authority survey that “more than £8 billion would be needed to carry out a one-time catch up to bring local roads in England up to scratch”.
Vindis, an Audi servicing provider and also the place to go to find plans from many other motoring brands so you can make sure your car is always in a perfect driving condition, has attempted to answer both of these questions. This is because they’ve taken the time to look at the scale of the UK’s problem with potholes currently…
Where are the worst places across the UK for potholes?
There are quite a few interesting aspects of a league table that has been put together by FillThatHole.org.uk. This is because it sees highway authorities ranked according to the number of road hazards which have been reported to them. Here’s a look at the top ten places currently in this table, as well as how the stats have changed since the summer of 2017…
| Position | Authority | Region | Total reports | Open reports | Fixed reports | Percentage fixed |
| 1
(= to 2017) |
Surrey | South East England | 8,732
(up 14.04% from 2017) |
7,455
(up 15.17% from 2017) |
1,240
(up 7.92% from 2017) |
14%
(down 1 percentage point from 2017) |
| 2
(= to 2017) |
Hampshire | South East England | 4,712
(up 14.01% from 2017) |
3,759
(up 15.98% from 2017) |
906
(up 6.71% from 2017) |
19%
(down 2 percentage points from 2017) |
| 3
(= to 2017) |
Essex | South East England | 4,130
(up 8.57% from 2017) |
3,209
(up 10.2% from 2017) |
906
(up 3.19% from 2017) |
22%
(down 1 percentage point from 2017) |
| 4
(= to 2017) |
Hertfordshire | South East England | 4,052
(up 13.92% from 2017) |
3,423
(up 13.95% from 2017) |
604
(up 13.96% from 2017) |
15%
(equal to 2017) |
| 5
(up 1 place from 2017) |
Lancashire | North West England | 3,972
(up 20.33% from 2017) |
3,080
(up 23.99% from 2017) |
867
(up 9.47% from 2017) |
22%
(down 2 percentage points from 2017) |
| 6
(down 1 place from 2017) |
Kent | South East England | 3,857
(up 10.9% from 2017) |
3,472
(up 11.82% from 2017) |
376
(up 3.3% from 2017) |
10%
(equal to 2017) |
| 7
(= to 2017) |
Oxfordshire | South East England | 3,663
(up 12.88% from 2017) |
2,618
(up 17.66% from 2017) |
1,009
(up 2.44% from 2017) |
28%
(down 3 percentage points from 2017) |
| 8
(up 1 place from 2017) |
Cheshire East | North West England | 3,452
(up 15.84% from 2017) |
2,556
(up 21.14% from 2017) |
813
(up 3.3% from 2017) |
24%
(down 3 percentage points from 2017) |
| 9
(down 1 place from 2017) |
Glasgow | Scotland | 3,203
(up 4.71% from 2017) |
2,564
(up 4.91% from 2017) |
625
(up 3.99% from 2017) |
20%
(equal to 2017) |
| 10
(no data for 2017) |
Buckinghamshire | South East England | 3,135
(up 13.83% from 2017) |
2,741
(up 14.26% from 2017) |
382
(up 11.37% from 2017) |
12%
(down 1 percentage point from 2017) |
One major headache is quickly established for those who are tasked with solving the UK’s issue with potholes after analysing the data in the table above. We can see from the figures that all of the ten authorities covered have increased the number of potholes that they have fixed, for instance. However, the number of potholes that have been reported has also increased in each authority. This indicates that there are more new potholes appearing than those tasked with repairing them can keep up with.
Let’s use the data related to the North West England region of Lancashire to put this problem into context. The number of fixed pothole reports in that area was up 9.47 per cent when compared to the summer of 2017’s figures. While this should be good news, it’s countered by the fact that the total reports in the region increased by 20.33 per cent and the number of open reports was up 23.99 per cent over this same period. Despite their efforts then, Lancashire has actually moved further up FillThatHole.org.uk’s league table!
Without a doubt, a huge effort is required if we are to rid the UK of every single pothole. It remains to be seen just how far the £420 million that has been provided from the 2018 Budget will go to solve the crisis on the nation’s road network, but hopefully it’ll be a step in the right direction.
Sources:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/1037920/budget-2018-uk-news-update-potholes-roads
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-46007351
https://www.fillthathole.org.uk/league-table?sort=desc&order=Total+Reports