The great pothole divide: Roads in the north of England have the greatest concentration of wheel-busting divots with the worst offenders receiving nearly 20 pothole reports per mile of tarmac, figures show

  • Half of 20 councils with the highest concentration of potholes were in the North
  • West Yorkshire district of Kirklees named as worst offender in England and Wales

Drivers are facing a north-south pothole divide, according to researchers.

Half of the 20 councils found to have the highest concentration of pothole reports were in the North, research found, with the West Yorkshire district of Kirklees named as the worst offender in England and Wales.

It racked up an average of just under 20 reports per mile of road – 23,513 across its 1,191-mile road network in 2022.

Lancashire County Council had the second highest ratio of reports – more than 15 pothole reports per average mile and 67,493 in total. 

The Daily Mail is campaigning for an end to the pothole plague, which is costing drivers millions in repair bills.

The Daily Mail is campaigning for an end to the pothole plague, which is costing drivers millions in repair bills

The figures come in responses to Freedom of Information requests submitted by the Bill Plant Driving School. 

Tom Hixon, head of instructor support at Bill Plant, suggested the divide could be partly due to the fact that greater volumes of rain tends to fall in northern areas.

However, analysis of Office for National Statistics figures by Labour suggests a regional disparity when it comes to road repairs funding.

A Kirklees Council spokesman said it filled 37,538 potholes in 2022. 

Meanwhile, Lancashire County Council said it aimed ‘to fix 90 per cent plus of potholes reported to us within 20 working days’.

READ MORE: Are these Britain’s worst potholes? The roads blighted by craters – and how it costs businesses and locals millions in repair bills… how bad is YOUR street? 

ESSEX – Seawick Road in St Osyth has been billed the worst road in the country for potholes

The figures were based on responses from 122 councils out of a total of around 150 which are responsible for roads.

RAC spokesman Rod Dennis said: ‘While the appalling state of some of the country’s roads is undeniable, it’s interesting that there can be such an apparent difference in the numbers in one part of the country compared to another.’

Tom Hixon, head of instructor support at Bill Plant Driving School, suggested the divide could be partly due to the fact that greater volumes of rain tends to fall in northern areas.

‘Since potholes generally occur through wet and cold weather on the roads which then expand and become more prone to breakage under the weight of vehicles,’ he said.

However, analysis of Office for National Statistics figures by Labour suggests a regional disparity when it comes to road repairs funding.

Yorkshire and the Humber, which includes five of the worst northern councils, was found to have had the harshest real-terms percentage funding cut at 26 per cent since April 202 – once inflation had been accounted for.

Louise Haigh, Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, said: ‘The Prime Minister vowed to make potholes a thing of the past – but he’s left 4 million of them on our roads.

‘And now we know the north are paying the price.’

However, analysis by the Conservative party suggest Tory councils repaired 16,250 potholes in 2021/22 – compared to 5,417 filled by Labour-controlled local authorities, according to The Sun.

A spokesman for the Local Government Association, which represents Britain’s local councils, said: ‘The Government needs to provide greater, longer-term funding certainty to all councils so that they can invest in preventative treatments to avoid potholes in the first place.’

A Government spokesman said: ‘We are investing more than £5 billion from 2020 to 2025 into local highways maintenance, and recently announced an extra £200m at the Budget to fix millions of potholes a year.

‘This funding is allocated based on the length and type of roads – without any regional bias – and local authorities decide how to use it based on local needs.’

Do you have a pothole problem in your area? Email [email protected]

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