We call on all Local Councils and the UK Government to:
Fix The UK's Potholes!
The UK's roads are in a worse state now than they have ever been. Potholes are everywhere, making driving hazardous for everyone. Even when repaired, it's often done badly and they soon reappear again, often causing damage to vehicles, which then need repairing. But it's not just a nightmare for anyone suffering damage to their vehicle from hitting one - not to mention terribly wasteful and polluting - it's really dangerous!
As a step towards reversing this situation, we have launched this website and an online petition. To sign our petition to get the UK's potholes fixed - properly - please go to:
change.org/FixTheUKsPotholes (opens in new window).
The problem is not just the damage and cost of repairs to both roads and vehicles, it is the danger to everyone who uses the roads. Hitting a pothole can cause serious damage, or even an accident, often leaving you stranded in the road, or by the roadside, vulnerable to passing traffic, as you wait for help. For cyclists and motorcyclists especially, they are a death trap and present a serious risk of injury or death if you fall off your 'bike' and/or end up in the path of oncoming - or fast following - traffic, which is very likely at busy times of the day.
As if that isn't enough, it is now impossible to drive without having to constantly watch out for potholes and try to avoid them, which takes the driver's attention away from watching other traffic, traffic signals and pedestrians, and everything else going on on the road, making the roads and pavements even more dangerous for everyone, including pedestrians, who may not even be ON the road!
The recent extreme wet weather has exacerbated the problem, with large puddles everywhere, hiding any potholes under the water, making it almost as bad as driving at night, which is prohibitive and ridiculously dangerous - even worse if it's dark
and
wet - as it's virtually impossible to see and avoid potholes and avoid damaging your vehicle and possibly having an accident. This is the worst time of day to be broken down at the side of the road with a puncture or damaged suspension!
You only have to read the feedback we get on our petition to see why this is so important, like this one: 'I got thrown into the second lane, late at night on an unlit, yet major A road hitting a large pothole. Fortunately, the other lane was clear, otherwise, it would have been a 60 mph accident.'
This is why we say that we are campaigning on a safety platform: potholes are not just a nuisance, they are extremely dangerous!
The more potholes that appear and the bigger and deeper they get, the more it is going to cost to keep fixing and re-fixing them and, eventually, resurface the roads - not to mention the costs to motorists and to local councils, who often have claims lodged against them to pay out for any damage that is sustained, plus the extra paperwork and stress for everyone involved.
This is another major problem for motorists, as many councils refuse to accept liability, meaning the only option to get recompense is to take them to court, which is time consuming, stressful and may end up costing money rather than getting your repair costs back, as if you lose, you may have to pay both your and their legal costs! This puts many motorists off trying to claim, putting the cost back on them, when it was never their fault in the first place.
On top of all this, there are the not inconsiderable other 'costs'; especially the initial shock, inconvenience, lost work hours, days or more with your vehicle off the road, stress and frustration and sometimes injury (or worse) - with the added cost to the NHS to treat the injured as well.
This is a very poor state of affairs and is extremely dangerous. This needs to change - fast!
We call on the government and all local councils to URGENTLY fix this pothole plague and get the UK's roads back to being safe to travel on, before someone gets killed by something as simple and easy to fix as a pothole - if it isn't already too late!
Sign our Petition:
change.org/FixTheUKsPotholes. (Opens in new window)
Potholes have become a major hazard in recent years, due to lower spending on road repairs by local councils and lack of support from the government. This cannot be allowed to continue. The damage being done to vehicles is at an all-time high, due to far more, bigger, and deeper potholes and higher traffic levels.
This is a disaster for the individuals unlucky enough to sustain the damage in many ways; in stress from the incident itself, often being stranded at the side of the road and having to get the vehicle recovered, managing while it's off the road, having to deal with garages to get the damage repaired and in dealing with councils who often refuse to take responsibility and pay for the damage. Then there is the cost of repairs, time lost, either personal or at work. There is also the real chance of injury, either to the person hitting the pothole - especially in the case of cyclists and motorcyclists - and/or anyone else unlucky enough to be hit in the process.
Then of course, there is the environmental cost of all the tyres, suspension and other parts that have to be replaced, often long before they would have normally worn out. Some of these may have been very new indeed. This is such a waste of the materials and power used in manufacturing these parts and the extra shipping, plus the environmental damage done by having to dispose of all the damaged parts - as if the already large mountains of old parts and vehicles having to be disposed of already wasn't bad enough!
This is just unacceptable. Roads may not be high on our communities' lists of favourite places, or great for the environment, but they are a modern necessity and, to be useful - and safe - they need to be kept in good order, so that people can go about their daily lives without worrying about where and when they are going to fall foul of something so simple as a great big hole in the road! Drivers should be able to drive and keep their eyes on what's happening on the road, watching other road users, traffic lights, pedestrians, etc., NOT constantly having to watch THE ROAD SURFACE - THIS is NOT SAFE!
Sign our Petition:
In recent years, governments have cut back on support to local councils, meaning they simply don't have the resources for this nowadays, so we call on the government to support local councils to URGENTLY fix this pothole plague and get the UK's roads back to being safe to travel on, before someone gets killed by something as simple and easy to fix as a pothole - if it isn't already too late!
To sign our petition to get these fixed, or to see the increasing amount of support we now have, please go to:
change.org/FixTheUKsPotholes. (Opens in new window)
Please also share the links to this site and to our petition on social media - the more the better. Thank you to those who already have.
Report a Pothole:
If you want to report a pothole in your area, one of the easiest places to do this is on the
FixMyStreet.com* website (Opens in new window). Here, you can report all sorts of problems in your local area, not just potholes.
*We are not affiliated to fixmystreet.com in any way, it is simply the easiest site we have found for reporting potholes and other road problems, regardless of which authority is responsible for that road. However, in order to claim for damage to your vehicle, you will in most cases have to report it
directly
to that authority,
before
you submit a claim.
For more information about what we stand for, please go to our
About Us Page
Or go to our
Petitions Page for more information about this and the other campaigns and petitions we support.
Back to Top