State of Cambridgeshire's roads leaves mechanic 'inundated with work'
The county council's set out short, medium and long-term repair plans
Last updated 25th Jan 2024
A mechanic has said he's inundated with work partly because of damage caused by some of Cambridgeshire's roads.
The county council has agreed to repair more than 150 roads in the Fens that have been affected by peat soil, which expand and contract during warmer and colder weather leading to cracks and bends in the road surface.
In the scheme, 25 of the most used roads including the B1104 near Isleham and the B1093 Benwick Road, Whittlesey will be initially focussed on.
Before the county council's highways and transport committee meeting this week, the authority said tackling this issue "is crucial to ensure safe efficient transport, safeguard the environment, and mitigate the associated economic burden of lost productivity and constant repairs."
Jamie Coombs is a mechanic in March:
"We haven't got the amount of time we normally spend with people and the ability to drop everything and jump on someone's car because we're inundated with the amount of work we've got on," he said.
"1 in 5 customers are coming in to say 'I've had to swerve, I've hit a pothole' and the roads were never this bad.
"The problem with the condition of the roads is they're amplifying the faults that are already there, making noises louder and corroded parts break.
"As soon as the road conditions are better, we should hopefully find that customer spending should be a lot lower."
More than £40m committed to repairing roads
Some of the short-term plans from the county council include enhancing safety signage along an affected route, weight restrictions for vehicles on peat soil affected roads and speed limits.
Plans for medium and long-term repairs have also been discussed, such as lobbying for more funding to provide what the council's said "a systemic solution to peat soil affected roads".
The council's looking to spend £43 million over the next two years in improving the county's roads, such as repairing and preventing potholes, which will be discussed at a full council meeting next month.
"We need to get moving forward"
Jamie believes there are drivers who will continue to use their vehicle for longer to avoid financial issues.
"Because of the financial situation, people will try to make things last as long as possible but the way the roads are now it's forcing people's hands to get these cars repaired which is putting them in a more financially difficult position," he added.
"There's talk from everybody but until they (the county council) start moving forward and doing something, I'm not interested; we need to be proactive and get moving forward."