Drivers ‘driven mad’ by state of pothole-plagued Shropshire roads

Heather Kidd, Lib Dem councillor for the Chirbury and Worthen ward, said she had been contacted by dozens of people complaining about the number of potholes which have sprung up following the cold weather.

She has even been told by a local coach operator that they are unwilling to travel the county lanes picking up schoolchildren while the roads are in such a perilous state.

Two weeks ago Kier took over the Shropshire Council maintenance contract for the roads from Ringway.

However Councillor Kidd says she has yet to see a repair lorry in her area of the county.

The potholes crisis was highlighted by the Shropshire Star in mid-March.

Dozens of readers sent pictures of damaged roads, including Emma Williams who pictured a waterlogged hole in the road complete with rubber ducks.

Councillor Kidd had a site visit with a Shropshire Council highways officer on Tuesday to highlight the problem.

She said: “He was aware of the situation and I told him that I have been inundated with people contacting me about the roads in south Shropshire.

“People are damaging their cars just by driving along the lanes and roads and this should not be happening.

“I have had a number of people complaining about the Priest Weston road.

“When I asked the council about this particular road I was told they were working on fixing it but that does not help the bus operator who runs a 51 seater coach to the community college in Bishop’s Castle.

“They have said they can not avoid the potholes and are unsure whether to travel the route in its current state.

“A mini bus also uses the road to get pupils to Chirbury Primary School and I know they feel the same way.

“Everybody is pretty cross. People have been reporting these potholes but nothing is being done.

“The council told me on Tuesday that there were 28 work teams out across the county but none of them seem to have made their way down here.

“There are two reasons the roads are so bad. The first is the cold weather we have had and the second is just that the upkeep of the roads is not good enough.

“The B4386 Montgomery road is awful.

“There have been a number of incidents that I have heard of with people ruining their tyres, wheels and steering.

"I have also been told how hard it is to make a claim against the council for any damage caused.

"Apparently to make a claim for the damage people have to prove when the damage happened, the exact spot of the pothole and take a photo of it. It is a big struggle and most people just give up.”

Shropshire Council received an extra £2.2 million from central government last month to tackle potholes.