Residents and cyclists have complained about the state of roads in Dinas Powys, which they say have become riddled with potholes. Local councillors and residents met up to protest about the roads in the Vale of Glamorgan town on Friday, May 5, arguing that the issue presents a major safety hazard.
The Vale of Glamorgan Council has since been to Dinas Powys to carry out work on the roads, including filling in potholes. However, people who live there, including local councillors, said it shouldn't get to the stage where potholes are four to five inches deep before work is carried out to fill them in.
One cyclist who lives in Dinas Powys, Colin Turner, said the road conditions on his street are "excellent", but added that when he gets on to the Mill Road/Pen-Y-Turnpike Road they are "disgusting".
"You have got to play dodge the potholes," said Colin. "It is scary because you have only got one life and you have got to be aware of the traffic in front of you and behind you."
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"Normally you just keep on a straight line and the traffic behind you knows where you are going, but if you are playing dodge the potholes you are backwards and forwards."
One resident, Dr Marilyn Godfrey, said she had witnessed another fellow resident taking on the job of filling in potholes himself. She said: "My son is a cyclist. He thinks nothing of 60 to 100 miles on a bike ride, but he says he has seen people hit a pothole and just come off."
Dr Godfrey added: "The past three or four years it has been really bad and there was one lovely gentleman who was repairing potholes himself at the bottom of the hill. A resident was actually out with a bucket of tarmac and gravel, trying to repair it himself."
Dr Stephanie Williams, who regularly walks past Mill Road, said: "People are having to change lanes, and there isn't the room for it, just to dodge them. It is really dangerous." Dr Williams said the state of the pavements is also a concern to her.
She added: "The pavements are a hazard to anyone with impaired mobility and that means sight, it means mums with push chairs, dogs and toddlers... it is really dangerous." Marilyn Lawrence, who has lived in Dinas Powys for more than 40 years, likened the work which has been carried out to repair the potholes to "patchwork quilting" along the road.
She added: "There is no point in patching it up because it just puts a lot of pressure on the rest of the road and we just end up with holes somewhere else. It hasn't done our car any good coming up and down, particularly coming down the Pen Y Turnpike Road. It is not very nice."
Dinas Powys community councillor Malcolm Phillips organised the pothole protest in Dinas Powys. He said: "There are quite a number of deep potholes, and when I say deep, some of them are four to five inches in depth. You can imagine a cyclist or a motorcyclist hitting one of those if it is not seen, particularly at night. The results of that could be catastrophic.
"Vehicle owners have also put on social media that they have actually hit the potholes which has caused severe damage to their vehicles. It is very costly as well. It is a duty of care on the local authority. Simply coming around and marking a pothole with yellow paint, initially, that indicates that it is a dangerous pothole and it needs attention, but to then leave it for two to three weeks where it is still deteriorating, that is not acceptable."
One of the Vale of Glamorgan Council's ward members for Dinas Powys, Councillor Anne Asbrey, said work is desperately needed to further repair the pavements and pot holes of Dinas Powys. Cllr Asbrey, who was present at the protest on Friday, said: "I just feel that I have noticed more and more potholes appearing with less and less repairs being done.
"A number of people, mainly councillors have queried the potholes in Dinas Powys and they are pretty deep, pretty wide and quite dangerous and we have been told by one or two people that there is no money in the pot. Number one, I think there is money there, but number two, it doesn't really matter if it is a health and safety issue. The money has to be found and there are reserves in the Vale of Glamorgan's money pot.
"Even if there wasn't, money has to be found to secure a safe environment for everybody but my concern is the residents of Dinas Powys." Figures from the Vale of Glamorgan Council show that the local authority filled in 700 potholes in March 2023. The council filled in 716 potholes in the month before this.
Highway inspectors undertake routine inspections at scheduled intervals through Dinas Powys, according to the council, with works orders being raised where "actionable defects" are observed. Once a pothole has been identified the contractor has an allocated time to complete the repair, dependant on the severity of the pothole.
A Vale of Glamorgan Council spokesperson said: "Filling potholes is a big part of our work to maintain the Vale’s highway infrastructure. In March alone the Vale of Glamorgan Council filled 700 potholes across the county. Our highways inspectors undertake regular inspections of roads in the Vale but residents can also report any potholes they may see via our website or by calling Contact One Vale."
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