Vast majority of drivers want potholes filled within a week

More than three-quarters of drivers think local authorities should fix potholes within a week of them being reported, the AA has found.

In a survey of more than 18,000 of the motoring organisation’s members, 76 per cent said that potholes should be fixed within seven days, while almost a fifth said they should be fixed within 24 hours.

There are strict guidelines for councils to follow when a pothole is reported. An engineer is sent to assess it, with top-priority potholes requiring a fix within hours. However, it could be months before action is taken over less dangerous potholes.

Councils have reduced the number of road inspectors in the face of budget cuts, meaning that some areas of the UK do not see regular inspections and rely on residents reporting a problem.

A report by the Asphalt Industry Alliance in March found that English and Welsh roads require £12 billion-worth of repairs.

AA president Edmund King said: “Our members are clear that the worsening condition of our road network needs addressing quickly.

“Smooth highways don’t just help with keeping compensation costs down, they can prevent the deaths of vulnerable road users like cyclists and motorcyclists.

“It can’t be right that one council could fill a lower-risk pothole within three weeks while a neighbouring council needs four weeks. Councils should have a backstop deadline, but with the emphasis on carrying out the repairs quicker.

“With the general election just around the corner, it would be an ideal time for all parties to tell the public how they intend to repair and improve our roads.”

The AA has pointed to a case in Surrey on March 1 2016, when cyclist Ralph Brazier suffered spinal injuries and died after hitting a pothole in a road in Weybridge. The surface had been inspected and classified ‘Priority 2’, with a team scheduled to repair it within five days.

However, the 52-year-old cyclist died just one day before the repairs were to take place.

At the inquest into Brazier’s death, the coroner criticised the way the council classified the priority of potholes, saying: “Surrey County Council has failed to take into sufficient account the fact that cyclists use the highways as well as the cycle lanes”.

He recorded a narrative verdict, saying the father-of-three died because of injuries he suffered in the accident.