Motorists across the north-east of England are set to continue to face headaches due to potholes, with the company charged with fixing the region’s roads, Velocity, stating to The Chronicle that the £4 million that was allocated by the Department for Transport to look into the issue was a “drop in the ocean”.
The problem looks to be just as big through the UK, if a new report by the RAC is anything to go by. According to the organisation’s figures, the RAC dealt with over 6,500 breakdown jobs between January and March 2017 which were likely attributable to poor road surfaces. The last time that so many pothole-related breakdowns were recorded in a three-month period was in the first quarter of 2015 (almost 6,900 breakdowns were recorded then). However, in the early months of 2015, the country was subjected to more days of frost and rainfall when compared to the first three months of 2017, when the nation experienced mild and moderately dry conditions.
“Our figures sadly show a surprising and unwelcome first quarter rise in the number of breakdowns where the poor quality of the road surface was a major factor,” the RAC’s chief engineer David Bizley acknowledged. “We had expected a figure no worse than that recorded in the first quarter of 2016 (4,026) and it is very concerning that the roads, strangely, appear to have deteriorated in a mild, comparatively dry winter.”
To try and find out just how serious an issue potholes are for British motorists, Inchcape Volkswagen, a VW service provider who also offers thorough aftersales services, MOTs and repairs to fix issues like wheel misalignment and suspension damage, has compiled together these facts and figures:
Number of drivers who have reported damage over the last 12 months (ranked by region)*
| Region | Number of drivers |
| South East England | 941k |
| London | 733k |
| South West England | 721k |
| Yorkshire & Humber | 720k |
| North West England | 687k |
| West Midlands | 609k |
| Scotland | 521k |
| Eastern England | 457k |
| East Midlands | 365k |
| North East England | 343k |
| Wales | 201k |
Cost on average to repair pothole damage (ranked by region)*
| Region | Average cost |
| Eastern England | £163.68 |
| South East England | £124.93 |
| London | £124.65 |
| Yorkshire & Humber | £120.00 |
| South West England | £119.01 |
| Scotland | £109.02 |
| West Midlands | £87.59 |
| North West England | £87.01 |
| East Midlands | £86.33 |
| North East England | £72.66 |
| Wales | £61.83 |
Hotspots for potholes across the UK
To get an idea of pothole hotspots throughout the UK, FillThatHole.org.uk has charted the top ten highway authorities based on how many road hazards that were reported to them. The results are as follows:
| Position | Authority | Region | Total reports | Open reports | Fixed reports | Percentage fixed |
| 1 | Surrey | South East England | 7,657 | 6,473 | 1,149 | 15% |
| 2 | Hampshire | South East England | 4,133 | 3,241 | 849 | 21% |
| 3 | Essex | South East England | 3,804 | 2,912 | 878 | 23% |
| 4 | Hertfordshire | South East England | 3,557 | 3,004 | 530 | 15% |
| 5 | Kent | South East England | 3,478 | 3,105 | 364 | 10% |
| 6 | Lancashire | North West England | 3,301 | 2,484 | 792 | 24% |
| 7 | Oxfordshire | South East England | 3,245 | 2,225 | 985 | 31% |
| 8 | Glasgow | Scotland | 3,059 | 2,444 | 601 | 20% |
| 9 | Cheshire East | North West England | 2,980 | 2,110 | 787 | 27% |
| 10 | West Sussex | South East England | 2,845 | 2,034 | 783 | 28% |
When ranked on open reports though, FillThatHole.org.uk’s top ten looks a little different…
| Position | Authority | Region | Open reports | Total reports | Fixed reports | Percentage fixed |
| 1 | Surrey | South East England | 6,473 | 7,657 | 1,149 | 15% |
| 2 | Hampshire | South East England | 3,241 | 4,133 | 849 | 21% |
| 3 | Kent | South East England | 3,105 | 3,479 | 364 | 10% |
| 4 | Hertfordshire | South East England | 3,004 | 3,557 | 530 | 15% |
| 5 | Essex | South East England | 2,912 | 3,804 | 878 | 23% |
| 6 | Lancashire | North West England | 2,484 | 3,301 | 792 | 24% |
| 7 | Glasgow | Scotland | 2,444 | 3,059 | 601 | 20% |
| 8 | Buckinghamshire | South East England | 2,399 | 2,754 | 343 | 13% |
| 9 | Oxfordshire | South East England | 2,225 | 3,245 | 985 | 31% |
| 10 | Devon | South West England | 2,114 | 2,519 | 385 | 15% |
How often potholes are being filled
There was an average of 13,468 potholes filled per local authority throughout England in 2016/17, according to statistics pulled from the Asphalt Industry Alliance’s Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance Survey 2017.
When it comes to FillThatHole.org.uk’s top ten authorities based on fixed reports, the results are as follows:
| Position | Authority | Region | Fixed reports | Total reports | Open reports | Percentage fixed |
| 1 | York | Yorkshire & Humber | 1,187 | 1,341 | 151 | 89% |
| 2 | Surrey | South East England | 1,149 | 7,657 | 6,473 | 15% |
| 3 | Bristol | South West England | 1,094 | 1,475 | 199 | 85% |
| 4 | Oxfordshire | South East England | 985 | 3,245 | 2,225 | 31% |
| 5 | Cheshire West & Chester | North West England | 913 | 1,252 | 30 | 97% |
| 6 | Essex | South East England | 878 | 3,804 | 2,912 | 23% |
| 7 | Northumberland | North East England | 869 | 1,123 | 5 | 99% |
| 8 | Hampshire | South East England | 849 | 4,133 | 3,241 | 21% |
| 9 | Islington | London | 825 | 985 | 0 | 100% |
| 10 | Lancashire | North West England | 792 | 3,301 | 2,484 | 24% |
England’s structural road condition percentage split
- Percentage of roads across England in good condition (i.e. they have 15 years or more residual life remaining) — 53 per cent.
- Percentage of roads across England in adequate condition (i.e. they have between five and 15 years’ residual life remaining) — 30 per cent.
- Percentage of roads across England in poor condition (i.e. they have less than five years’ residual life remaining) — 17 per cent.