SUVs are making Britain’s potholes worse, say scientists

SUV are said to exert about five times more force on the road than the typical passenger car. Photograph: David Michael Bellis/Getty

Drivers who choose SUVs are compounding the pothole problem, experts have warned, as research showed hundreds of thousands of people bought bigger cars to navigate damaged roads.

Scientists said the cumulative effect of increasing numbers of heavier vehicles was a contributory factor in Britain’s potholes getting worse.