Stamford pothole problem 'worst in 35 years', says local mechanic
Lincolnshire County Council said it's repaired over 400 potholes in the area since February 2023
Last updated 4th Feb 2024
Potholes in Stamford are the worst they have been in recent years, according to a mechanic specialising in cars damaged by uneven road surfaces.
Adrian Tyler, of West Street Garage, said: 'The sheer volume and the severity of the potholes in the main roads, the A-roads, are more severe than I've actually seen in thirty-five years of commuting in and out of Stamford.'
Lincolnshire County Council said it is doing all it can to fix potholes, and have "exceeded the issues reported and repaired a total of 428 potholes" in the past year.
Research, from SmartSurvey, found Peterborough authorities are Britain’s second most responsive city council when it comes to fixing potholes - with Bath taking top spot.
It dealt with 2,242 potholes reported over the past 17 years. Only 137 of them remained unfixed as at January 12th, 2024. That's a fix-rate of nearly 94%.
A high price of repair
Adrian Tyler, of West Street Garage, said roads have worsened since the end of 2023:
'The roads in Stamford, they're significantly worse now after Christmas. Some of these holes are particualrly bad. I would think it's actually dangerous for a two-wheeled bike to hit one of these.'
'Although we're seeing no increase in the volume of impact-related damages, the actual cost and severity of damage is higher for customers.'
'Most of our customers who are coming in say this has happened at night. In daylight they can see it coming, but at night, in darkness, when potholes are covered in water, they're not as noticeable.'
A Lincolnshire County Council spokesperson said: “Since February 2, 2023 we have had 286 potholes in the Stamford area reported to us on FixMyStreet.
“In that area, we have exceeded the issues reported and repaired a total of 428 potholes in the same period. Since January 1 we have had 30 potholes around Stamford reported to us and these are now scheduled into a works programme for repair.
“Across the whole county, we and thousands of residents are working hard to return to a pre-flood state having had a large proportion of our 5,500-mile long Lincolnshire roads network underwater, or severely impacted by elevated water levels, since last October.
“Extreme weather across the winter has undoubtedly had an effect on areas of the road network, but we are pleased to be repairing so many issues reported to us. Last year overall we repaired more than 100,000 potholes in our county.
“We continue to strongly encourage anyone experiencing issues to report them to us on FixMyStreet so that we may add them to the work programme and continue with our improvements.”