Motorists in Kent have vented their frustration to Kent County Council about the state of the roads. A large number of potholes have opened up, making the roads dangerous as drivers either swerve to avoid them or potentially cause serious damage to their vehicles.
The latest observation is on the A28 East Cross near Tenterden, where there is over 100 yards of potholes to contend with. There is also a considerable number of deep holes on the entire length of the A20, from West Kingsdown down to Harrietsham, towards Ashford. There are numerous potholes on Kent’s rural roads too. But this is just the tip of the iceberg as the county is littered with hundreds, if not thousands of potholes.
The problem has become so bad in Tenterden that one campaigner has launched a petition, which has been sent to KCC. The BBC local news has also picked up the story.
Leader of KCC, Roger Gough responded to the latest complaint by saying “One of our officers is assessing the site today. A temporary repair will be carried out and a permanent repair is being planned for, but this is weather dependent”.
Both my front and rear tyre were damaged
The problem is that the majority of these potholes are because they were temporary fixes in the first place, which have just reopened with the bad weather.
Kent was hit by snow before Christmas which appears to have exacerbated the issue, although if the roads had been in a good state of repair before the bad weather, then they may have coped a bit better.
There is also a policy where KCC will only fix a pothole if it is reported or marked, but will ignore any other potholes in close vicinity. This is an expensive practice that has to be challenged if the council are ever going to get on top of the issue. Contractors need to guarantee their work for at least 5 years, and be made to put right at their own expense.
