A combination of heavy rain and cold weather at various points in the past few weeks has meant more potholes are popping up across Swansea, making some of our daily commutes a slalom course as we try to avoid them.
There have been reports of some potholes that are two and a half inches deep and as long as six foot and on New Year's Day Swansea residents were affected by road closures due to a damaged road in Ynystawe. Some roads in Swansea have been compared to "farm tracks" and described as "awful" by angry drivers taking to social media.
One Swansea resident described the roads in their local area of Cwmrhydyceirw as "disgusting" and another exasperated local wrote that "the roads everywhere are horrendous". Another Swansea driver complained that "some roads in Swansea are absolutely ridiculous," adding that driving to avoid the potholes was dangerous in itself.
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Swansea Council said a record number of potholes were repaired on the weekend between Christmas and New Year with more than 100 filled during a two-day period. Usually, this number of potholes would be filled in a week but the recent weather had created the perfect conditions for potholes with heavy rain and frost breaking up road surfaces overnight, added a spokesperson.
Andrew Stevens, cabinet member for environment and infrastructure, said the council expected to receive more reports and carry out more repairs as the weather got colder and wetter this time of year. He added: “We made a pledge to repair potholes within 48hrs of them being reported to our call centre and in general we have kept to that pledge with around 98% of them being repaired within that time frame."
Through the council's 48-hour service, 526 potholes were repaired and the council completed over 5,000 previous fixes in the previous 12 months. Cllr Stevens said: “Many of the staff that repair roads are also responsible for gritting roads as well. This puts a lot of pressure on the teams to do what’s required and ensure our roads are safe for motorists."
He added: “In the main, they have done an excellent job in keeping roads in good shape. I hope the public will also see the good work they are doing and support their efforts."
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