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Cheshire West and Chester named best highways authority for filling potholes

CTC unveils Fill That Hole Awards - people's vote goes to London Borough of Brent...

CTC has named Cheshire West and Chester the country’s top highways authority when it comes to fixing potholes, with all 47 defects reported to it via the national cyclists’ organisation’s Fill That Hole website getting speedily repaired.

It wasn’t the only highways authority with a 100% record – Newham, West Lothian, Brent, Redbridge and Luton also achieving that benchmark.
Cheshire West and Chester received its award yesterday at a ceremony at the Walkers Stadium in Leicester.

It was also one of the runners-up in the People’s Vote award, based on ratings of one to five stars given by members of the public using the Fill That Hole website to notify their local highways authority of defects needing repairing.

The London Borough of Brent scooped that award, with the other two runners-up being Bath and North East Somerset Council and Bristol City Council.

CTC teamed up for the initiative with road materials supplier Aggregate Industries, whose Mike Archer said: “Local authorities are under immense pressure regarding road maintenance and we think it is only right to recognise the work they are doing to respond to these problems and ensure our roads are safe.

“Our awards scheme encouraged local authorities to not only address pothole problems quickly and effectively but also to let the public know how well they are doing. In the battle between fixing potholes and managing the requirement for more effective long term road maintenance, communication with the public is critical.”

Roger Geffen, Campaigns and Policy Director at CTC, added: “The public is very keen to see improved road maintenance standards, and this is particularly true for cyclists, as good surfaces are hugely important for their safety. With Fill That Hole making it easy for road users to report road defects, people are discovering that many councils are good at fixing them quickly once they know about them.”

While the competition was under way, some 11,200 potholes were reported, some via a dedicated iPhone app, and although the contest is now over, you can of course continue to use the site to flag up problems requiring attention.
 

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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Simon_MacMichael | 13 years ago
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Don't get me started on Lambeth Council. At uni, two months after my grant cheque (younger readers - ask your parents) had been due to arrive, we learnt it had been sent to Aberystwyth.

On asking why it had gone there rather than Cardiff, where I was studying, there was a pause followed by, "Isn't Cardiff in Aberystwyth?"  29

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OldRidgeback | 13 years ago
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Meanwhile Lambeth Council in London has started a new policy aimed at saving money. Only potholes deeper than 4cm will be classed as potholes and repaired. Ones shallower than that will not be repaired. The aim is to save cash. However, anyone with any sense can appreciate that this will lead to accidents, more insurance claims against the council and a far greater cost for road repairs in the future. Also road inspections will only be carried out on a six month basis rather than the four month basis used previously. Well done Lambeth Council!

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