Flintshire council tops pothole response table

Flintshire council has among the quickest response times in Britain for filling serious potholes, new research has revealed.

Figures released by motoring charity the RAC Foundation show the authority aims to make road repairs "immediately".

The longest response time in Wales was in Vale of Glamorgan, which promises to investigate the following working day.

However the Vale council said the data does not show its "true performance".

The figures are based on Freedom of Information (FOI) data provided by about 190 of the 207 local highway authorities in Britain.

Steve Jones, from Flintshire council, said: "Following a particularly severe winter last year, with prolonged periods of cold weather, there was an increase in the number of potholes on the highway network and subsequently additional resources were allocated over the summer months, to carry out the necessary repairs.

"Highway condition surveys and routine inspections take place across the network on a regular basis to ensure that the roads in most need of treatment are repaired in a timely manner. However, given the scale and complexity of the highway asset and the continual deterioration, due to traffic and weather conditions, there will be always be a backlog of maintenance work."

Flintshire falls alongside Cumbria and South Lanarkshire councils, which try to act "immediately" to sort out potholes.

The authority said it would look at using drones to prevent potholes and fix cracks in roads as a solution to a £40m repair backlog.

Anglesey has a target repair time of just an hour and will also intervene with the shallowest holes in carriageways - a minimum of 20mm.

Five further councils aim to patch things up within two hours including Carmarthenshire, Caerphilly and Cardiff.

Many Welsh councils say they will respond within 24 hours.

Mike Clogg, transport operations manager for Vale of Glamorgan council, said: "The most recent APSE performance data shows that the council is the best performing authority when it comes to dealing with the most serious potholes that present a significant danger to the public, with the vast majority being repaired within two to three hours.

"Response times to lower category potholes are in line with those from other Welsh councils, while we are also continuing with our very successful Big Fill campaign.

"This involves visiting all wards throughout the county for an intensive session of repairs in response to concerns raised by residents."