Spring is here and the potholes are in bloom

Tired of Edinburgh roads being so bad and having reported a major pothole several weeks before, cycle courier Sara Griffin took matters into her own green-fingered hands. She filled the pothole in question with 35 litres of compost and added a floral display to create her own plantpothole.

Griffin told the Scotland’s Worst Drivers website that she had reported the pothole on Castle Terrace to the council city centre team a few weeks before, but while they had repaired all the nearby potholes and road defects, they ignored this one.

Iwaited till the car left and planted some daffodils, man it looks a lot better. And I added some cones to protect it pic.twitter.com/GnJHj5SfaX

— Sara Griffin (@cyclemor3) March 27, 2015

Earlier this week, Edinburgh News reported that almost £1 million worth of new road surfacing in the city needs replacing after it began breaking up within weeks of being laid. The issue with the treatment known as “thin surface overlay” was traced back to material from a coating plant in Leith, with supplier Cemex agreeing to pay for the repairs. Castle Terrace was not one of the roads affected, however.

Treating potholes as plant pots is not a new idea. Back in 2010, we reported on Steve Wheen, the Pothole Gardener, who explained his motivation. “I find potholes a constant menace and I've almost come off my bike several times. I'm also a mad-keen gardener and wanted to make a point."

Wheen says that such efforts don’t tend to last long. His first lasted just two hours and while he claims to have had one that lasted three weeks, he has moderate expectations for his work. “If it draws a cyclist's attention to a pothole and puts a smile on their face it's good enough for me.”

In 2007, CTC set up the Fill That Hole website, which provides users with an easy way to report any potholes they find. The site also ranks highway authorities according to their response to the hazards reported through the site. This has also led to the Fill That Hole Awards, which are designed to encourage local authorities to address pothole problems quickly and effectively.