‘Potholes making my life a misery’ (From Swindon Advertiser)

‘Potholes making my life a misery’

11:50am Wednesday 14th July 2010 in

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POTHOLES are giving one pensioner trouble every time he ventures out of his street.

Ted Spaulding, 75, of Beverley, Toothill, said despite numerous calls to the council no-one from Swindon council had solved the problem on Flint Hill that has been plaguing drivers since March.

He believes the two tyres he has had replaced this year are due to the conditions of that road.

The council has said it will treat the road as a priority.

Mr Spaulding said: “Where does our road tax go?

“It’s disgusting – I feel disappointed and let down and it’s not only me.

“Too many people don’t moan about things, they say look at the state of the roads, but they don’t moan. If we don’t express our views nothing will get done.”

According to Mr Spaulding, the potholes extend along Flint Hill a distance of around an eighth of a mile upward from the junction of Flint Hill and Idovers Drive.

Mr Spaulding, who recently retired from work as a minibus driver, said he believed the potholes were a major danger for motorcyclists and cyclists, who could be destabilised and fall, as well as damaging cars.

He said he bought his car only a year ago and has had two tyres replaced, which he believes is down to potholes.

He added that it is also not helping his 62-year-old wife Brenda’s bad back every time they have to drive over it. His only alternative is to take an extensive detour to avoid the road.

“I reckon something should be done about it,” said Mr Spaulding.

“It shakes the life out of you.”

Potholes are usually caused by fatigue of the pavement surface.

However, they can be worsened by low temperatures, as water expands when it freezes to form ice, and puts greater stress on an already cracked pavement or road.

Although the council had come out in February and filled in some of the holes, with the heavy snow and ice in March this work was undone and the holes have reappeared.

The problem is also being exaccerbated, Mr Spaulding claims, by the fact that the road is part of a major bus route and therefore has double decker buses passing along the road at regular intervals.

A spokesman for Swindon council said: “Flint Hill is an important route and we are aware that the surface is not in a good condition. We are currently going through a tendering process for our next programme of road repairs, and we will treat it as a priority.

“We hope that when the tendering is over we will have the money to do more than just fill in the holes on Flint Hill, and will be able to do more extensive repairs to the surface. The number of potholes we’ve had to deal with this year has been far more than we could normally expect, and it is taking time to get round all the roads that need work.”