Pothole reporting is misleading, Lancashire county councillor says

A Lancashire county councillor claims the system for reporting potholes is "totally misleading the public" about how soon they are repaired.

Labour's John Fillis said five days after reporting potholes on Ormskirk Road in Up Holland, he was told the work had been completed.

But when he went to check only one of the two potholes had been filled in.

The council said the higher-risk pothole was fixed first and any delays were due to it being Christmas.

"I could not believe it - this dangerous pothole was still there," Mr Fillis said.

"The app is being used by the public who, like me, believe it to be accurate. 

"But it is completely misleading, claiming that work has been completed when it clearly has not."

He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: "[The council needs] to be open and honest with the public;  Lancashire roads are wrecked due to splash-and-dash mismanagement - and false reporting will add injuries to insults."

The county council said it carried out "regular safety inspections" with the busiest, higher-risk roads inspected most often.

"The approach we take to potholes is to identify issues and undertake repairs in good time to keep our roads safe," it said.

"We aim to fix 90% (or more) of potholes reported to us within 20 working days."

The council added there might have been "potential delays in updates" during the festive period.

"Our highways officers attended Ormskirk Road as soon as they were made aware… and a repair was undertaken accordingly.

"A further repair to a lower-risk pothole on Ormskirk Road was completed [on 9 January]," it added.

It comes as reports of potholes and damage they caused hit five-year highs, according to local governments and the AA.

The AA estimates they may have cost UK drivers as much as £500m in repairs.

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