Hidden dangers of potholes 'cause accidents'

10:30am Monday 18th February 2013 in News Photograph of the Author By Mark Taylor, Reporter. Please call me on (01865) 425411

Kennington parish councillor Roger Gelder examines potholes on Kennington Road. Picture: Damian Halliwell Kennington parish councillor Roger Gelder examines potholes on Kennington Road. Picture: Damian Halliwell

SOME pothole-plagued roads are “like the surface of the moon”, angry drivers have claimed.

The Oxford Mail was inundated with responses when it asked residents to point out pothole hotspots after statistics showed the number had trebled in five years.

Jimmy Hetherington, of Cowley Road, said he waited two months for the council to fill a pothole four times the length of his shoe.

He said: “As it got quite deep it claimed about four car tyres, and a cyclist’s front wheel and face.

“He hit the hole, landed on his face, and then nearly got run over by the car behind him.”

Mr Hetherington said an hour before the incident he had reported that it was likely to cause an accident but had been “fobbed off”.

He added: “This started on December 14 due to a broken water main. Thames Water came out and repaired the broken water main but since then the hole has opened up time and time again and been temporarily refilled.”

Roads around Kennington in South Oxford were deemed to be some of the worst areas in the county.

Brian Ponting, from Mill Lane in Marston, said his road near the Northern Bypass was in the worst state he could remember.

He said: “These holes on Mill Lane have been here quite some time. I have lived in this area for nearly 50 years and they haven’t done anything about them.

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“There are problems on the pavement and on the road. If a cyclist hits one it could be very dangerous.

“That isn’t very safe, especially when there are cars parked by the side of the road and you can’t see the cars driving down the road.”

Roger Gelder, a Kennington parish councillor who lives in Poplar Grove, said: “You can’t drive around here and not notice them, they are unavoidable. We are seeing fairly serious deterioration of the roads around the village.

“The area near the school is considered to be pretty bad and there are new holes breaking up every week.”

Danny Phillips reported Walterbush Road in Chipping Norton and said: “It's like driving on the moon.”

Oxford City Council Liberal Democrat group leader Jean Fooks said she had reported a large pothole near Carfax in the city centre after a member of the public injured themselves stepping into it.

Ms Fooks said: “I’ve reported it myself twice, I know at least one other person has.

“Someone has also reported an elderly man tripped in it.

“They don’t seem to realise how bad it is or how dangerous it is, and it is a huge problem for cyclists too. Surely something like this will be a priority, it should take two weeks not two months.”

Comments (4)

1:00pm Mon 18 Feb 13

Andrew:Oxford says...

The really bizarre thing is, whenever I report a pothole or fly-tipping issue to the local authority via their interactive website - I get response immediately with an incident reference number.

The website is incredibly easy to use. Just pinpoint the problem on a zoom-able map. Provide some helpful text and if you have the sense to take a photo with your mobile - upload that too.

Last pothole I reported was fixed within 3 hours of my on-line submission.

Clearly there are real problem stretches though - London Road is a major one, but then there is little point in undertaking major repairs when the locals are still protesting about bus lanes.
The really bizarre thing is, whenever I report a pothole or fly-tipping issue to the local authority via their interactive website - I get response immediately with an incident reference number. The website is incredibly easy to use. Just pinpoint the problem on a zoom-able map. Provide some helpful text and if you have the sense to take a photo with your mobile - upload that too. Last pothole I reported was fixed within 3 hours of my on-line submission. Clearly there are real problem stretches though - London Road is a major one, but then there is little point in undertaking major repairs when the locals are still protesting about bus lanes. Andrew:Oxford

1:01pm Mon 18 Feb 13

Mark L. says...

I have reported so many potholes over the last three years that I am fed up doing so. The roads now are a complete disgrace and in many places are embarrassing. Many of my foreign work colleagues can't believe how bad our roads are for a supposed modern developed country. As motorists we deserve more,especially as we are fleeced by the Government.
I have reported so many potholes over the last three years that I am fed up doing so. The roads now are a complete disgrace and in many places are embarrassing. Many of my foreign work colleagues can't believe how bad our roads are for a supposed modern developed country. As motorists we deserve more,especially as we are fleeced by the Government. Mark L.

1:06pm Mon 18 Feb 13

Mark L. says...

Andrew:Oxford wrote:
The really bizarre thing is, whenever I report a pothole or fly-tipping issue to the local authority via their interactive website - I get response immediately with an incident reference number. The website is incredibly easy to use. Just pinpoint the problem on a zoom-able map. Provide some helpful text and if you have the sense to take a photo with your mobile - upload that too. Last pothole I reported was fixed within 3 hours of my on-line submission. Clearly there are real problem stretches though - London Road is a major one, but then there is little point in undertaking major repairs when the locals are still protesting about bus lanes.
Some of the potholes I have reported have taken in excess of three months to be repaired. One lot near Faringdon took six months to be repaired and they are once again appearing as they didn't do a proper job in the first place.The ones in my road were not enacted upon at all the first time I reported them . The second time, they were filled after a fortnight. The ones on the A420 towards Swindon will be sorted when the road is supposedly re sufaced in 2014 !.
[quote][p][bold]Andrew:Oxford[/bold] wrote: The really bizarre thing is, whenever I report a pothole or fly-tipping issue to the local authority via their interactive website - I get response immediately with an incident reference number. The website is incredibly easy to use. Just pinpoint the problem on a zoom-able map. Provide some helpful text and if you have the sense to take a photo with your mobile - upload that too. Last pothole I reported was fixed within 3 hours of my on-line submission. Clearly there are real problem stretches though - London Road is a major one, but then there is little point in undertaking major repairs when the locals are still protesting about bus lanes.[/p][/quote]Some of the potholes I have reported have taken in excess of three months to be repaired. One lot near Faringdon took six months to be repaired and they are once again appearing as they didn't do a proper job in the first place.The ones in my road were not enacted upon at all the first time I reported them . The second time, they were filled after a fortnight. The ones on the A420 towards Swindon will be sorted when the road is supposedly re sufaced in 2014 !. Mark L.

2:07pm Mon 18 Feb 13

zimmer, Wolvecote. says...

Mark L. wrote:
Andrew:Oxford wrote:
The really bizarre thing is, whenever I report a pothole or fly-tipping issue to the local authority via their interactive website - I get response immediately with an incident reference number. The website is incredibly easy to use. Just pinpoint the problem on a zoom-able map. Provide some helpful text and if you have the sense to take a photo with your mobile - upload that too. Last pothole I reported was fixed within 3 hours of my on-line submission. Clearly there are real problem stretches though - London Road is a major one, but then there is little point in undertaking major repairs when the locals are still protesting about bus lanes.
Some of the potholes I have reported have taken in excess of three months to be repaired. One lot near Faringdon took six months to be repaired and they are once again appearing as they didn't do a proper job in the first place.The ones in my road were not enacted upon at all the first time I reported them . The second time, they were filled after a fortnight. The ones on the A420 towards Swindon will be sorted when the road is supposedly re sufaced in 2014 !.
We now have to accept that with all motorists tax money raised through fuel tax, insurance tax, motor vehicle licence (road tax) etc being diverted to central government funds, that we will have to put up with roads that are unfit for use. The Council have a long and very expensive contract with a company to repair potholes, and the company repair them on the cheap (for free) under the terms. As one pothole is filled in, another one opens up, and when that is filled in, the last one opens up again. About 5-6 years ago The High Street and Madgalen Bridge to the plain were rebuilt, the congestion was horrific, but the then head of roads Mr Hudspeth, now leader of everything in Oxfordshire, in an interview on The BBC said that although the congestion was bad it will be worth it because this road surface will last 25 YEARS, before anymore work will need to be done. Well less than a quarter of the time that the road was going to last it has failed in many places, and no amount of patching up will save it. Personally i think that it is The Council getting the cheapest quote, and going with it without getting a guarantee on quality. Every road in Oxford needs to be rebuilt, not patched up, but that is pie in the sky. And by this time next year The High and Madgalen Bridge will be back to it's former state, with all that £millions of your money and time wasted. Mr Hudspeth should be called to question over this and not allowed to pass the buck, on HIS decision that has cost Oxford City Tax Payers £milions for an inferior, nay criminally fraudulent service. Obviously Mr Hudspeth did not get a guarantee for the millions of our tax money that he paid out for this debacle. Sack him.
[quote][p][bold]Mark L.[/bold] wrote: [quote][p][bold]Andrew:Oxford[/bold] wrote: The really bizarre thing is, whenever I report a pothole or fly-tipping issue to the local authority via their interactive website - I get response immediately with an incident reference number. The website is incredibly easy to use. Just pinpoint the problem on a zoom-able map. Provide some helpful text and if you have the sense to take a photo with your mobile - upload that too. Last pothole I reported was fixed within 3 hours of my on-line submission. Clearly there are real problem stretches though - London Road is a major one, but then there is little point in undertaking major repairs when the locals are still protesting about bus lanes.[/p][/quote]Some of the potholes I have reported have taken in excess of three months to be repaired. One lot near Faringdon took six months to be repaired and they are once again appearing as they didn't do a proper job in the first place.The ones in my road were not enacted upon at all the first time I reported them . The second time, they were filled after a fortnight. The ones on the A420 towards Swindon will be sorted when the road is supposedly re sufaced in 2014 !.[/p][/quote]We now have to accept that with all motorists tax money raised through fuel tax, insurance tax, motor vehicle licence (road tax) etc being diverted to central government funds, that we will have to put up with roads that are unfit for use. The Council have a long and very expensive contract with a company to repair potholes, and the company repair them on the cheap (for free) under the terms. As one pothole is filled in, another one opens up, and when that is filled in, the last one opens up again. About 5-6 years ago The High Street and Madgalen Bridge to the plain were rebuilt, the congestion was horrific, but the then head of roads Mr Hudspeth, now leader of everything in Oxfordshire, in an interview on The BBC said that although the congestion was bad it will be worth it because this road surface will last 25 YEARS, before anymore work will need to be done. Well less than a quarter of the time that the road was going to last it has failed in many places, and no amount of patching up will save it. Personally i think that it is The Council getting the cheapest quote, and going with it without getting a guarantee on quality. Every road in Oxford needs to be rebuilt, not patched up, but that is pie in the sky. And by this time next year The High and Madgalen Bridge will be back to it's former state, with all that £millions of your money and time wasted. Mr Hudspeth should be called to question over this and not allowed to pass the buck, on HIS decision that has cost Oxford City Tax Payers £milions for an inferior, nay criminally fraudulent service. Obviously Mr Hudspeth did not get a guarantee for the millions of our tax money that he paid out for this debacle. Sack him. zimmer, Wolvecote.

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