Car breakdowns due to potholes soar in rainy July

Car breakdowns owed to potholes soared successful July arsenic repairs slowed during 1 of the wettest months connected record, figures show.

The AA motoring organisation said call-outs for car harm from potholes roseate by astir 20% compared with past July.

Wet upwind meant drivers often could not spot the potholes portion repair efforts by councils were affected.

The AA said communal incidents included damaged daze absorbers and dented wheels.

In total, the radical said it had received 50,079 call-outs successful July to assistance vehicles stranded from an brushwood with a pothole - the highest fig for that period since 2018.

The AA added that truthful far, 2023 was the 3rd "worst year" for pothole breakdowns. It said it had attended 362,172 incidents by the extremity of past month.

The occupation could adhd much fiscal woes to drivers who are already suffering from grounds precocious car costs, including insurance, which is 21% higher than this clip past year.

Jack Cousens, caput of roads argumentation astatine the AA, said councils volition present beryllium "under much pressure" to get planned repair enactment completed earlier winter.

Potholes go worse successful winter, erstwhile h2o tin seep into cracks successful the road. The changeless freezing and thawing of h2o successful icy temperatures weakens the operation of the roadworthy and worldly yet dislodges with the question of vehicles, causing holes.

"With 2023 looking to beryllium 1 of the worst years connected grounds for pothole damage, we request to spot much concern successful section roads attraction funding," Mr Cousens said.

He added that for cyclists and motorbike riders, harm from potholes tin beryllium fatal.

The outgo of bringing potholed roads successful England and Wales up to scratch has been estimated astatine £14bn.

The authorities accrued its Potholes Fund by £200m, to £709m for 2023.

Shaun Davies, who chairs the Local Government Association, said "decades" of reduced authorities backing has "left councils facing the biggest ever yearly pothole repair backlog".

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: "It's for section authorities to support their highways.

"To assistance them bash that we're investing much than £5bn from 2020 to 2025, with an other £200m announced astatine the Budget successful March to resurface roads up and down the country"

The spokesperson added that caller rules had besides been brought successful to clamp down connected inferior companies leaving potholes down aft thoroughfare works.

In June, a antheral from southbound East London resorted to turning potholes successful to works of creation successful bid to drawback the council's attention.

Sir Rod had said that contempt the pothole causing harm to a passing ambulance, "no-one tin beryllium bothered to do" immoderate repairs.