Newton Abbot pothole problem ‘getting out of hand’

More than 50 fresh potholes have appeared in a busy Newton Abbot street as a result of recent storms.

Cllr Phil Bullivant (Con), who represents the town’s Bradley ward, told a Teignbridge Council meeting that the holes had appeared in East Street, most of them made up of previous repairs which had been washed out by torrential rain.
He urged the highway authority, in this case Devon County Council, to make a better job of repairs.
Potholes are caused mainly by water getting into cracks in the road surface and then freezing. When the ice thaws it leaves voids which collapse under the weight of passing traffic.
Material used to repair the holes can then be washed out during periods of heavy rain, leaving unpatched holes.
The increasing use of heavier vehicles, including sports utility vehicles and electric cars, is making the problems worse.
Cllr Bullivant told a meeting of the Teignbridge overview and scrutiny committee he had been surprised by the number of repaired potholes that had been washed out in recent weeks.
“In East Street more than 50 potholes have been washed out,” he said. “Some of them are quite deep. This has never happened before.
“The quality of the work done to repair potholes has deteriorated over the last 12 months to an extent that is getting out of hand.
“We need to know why pothole failures have occurred to the extent to which they have.”
The Teignbridge highways and traffic orders committee – a hybrid committee with members from Teignbridge and Devon councils – will be asked to explain.