Pothole-related incidents have returned to pre-pandemic levels, with the UK seeing the worst September for road surfaces since 2018.
New data has shown how pothole incidents saw a 10 per cent rise compared to September 2022, as drivers battle through the plague of potholes across the country.
The AA stated that the latest data shows how the money saved from the HS2 project is desperately needed to address the number of potholes on roads.
Throughout September, AA patrols attended 47,223 pothole-related incidents, despite the start of the month being relatively dry.
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The breakdown provider service has attended 458,391 pothole-related incidents so far in 2023, at an average of 50,992 per month.
If this was to continue at the same rate, 2023 would exceed 2019’s total of 550,876, highlighting how more needs to be done to get local roads back up to scratch.
Experts are warning that drivers will continue to feel the brunt of the poor condition of roads, as well as the financial impacts that come along with driving over a pothole.
Jack Cousens, head of roads policy for the AA, urged the Government and local authorities to take steps to improve surfaces for the benefit of all road users.
He said: “After a dry start to the month and the hope that our roads would receive some much-needed extra pothole maintenance, drivers faced the now familiar challenge of trying to spot potholes lurking beneath the surface of rainwater.
“With family budgets stretched, thousands of drivers have yet again found themselves needing to find extra funds to repair the damage to their car's tyres, wheels, or suspension components.”
In the March Budget, the Government announced a further £200million boost to the Potholes Fund, which was estimated to be enough to fill four million potholes across England.
There have since been calls for the Government to do more to address the road issues with drivers saying that the surface of roads has worsened since the pandemic.
It is hoped that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will unveil new plans in the Autumn Statement, which is scheduled to take place on November 22.
Jack Cousens added: “The trend of pothole-related breakdowns continues to head in the wrong direction and 2023 still looks to be one of the worst years on record for pothole damage, again highlighting the need for more investment in local roads maintenance funding stronger than ever.
“We know that longer term funding has been pledged from HS2 savings but the Chancellor has the opportunity to give some short-term pothole relief by announcing more cash for roads in his Autumn Statement.
“There is a financial cost to vehicles damaged by potholes but there can be a cost in lives for those on two wheels damaged by potholes.”
Between April 2018 and December 2019, UK councils paid out more than £3.7million in compensation, with AA estimating that local authorities could have filled almost 94,000 potholes for that money.
Edmund King, AA President, said: "In the context of pothole compensation it's a case of throwing money down a hole."
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Pothole-related incidents have returned to pre-pandemic levels
PA
Over 300,000 breakdown cases were seen between January and July this year, with steering, suspension and tyres being the main issues seen.
