Medway residents demand potholes are repaired this winter

KentOnline / KMTV

It comes after the AA warned that October was the worst month for pothole breakdowns in its history.

Transcript

00:00 For two days here in Gillingham, window cleaner Roger Hogg couldn't work.

00:04 The reason? Potholes.

00:06 Back in April, his van hit a hole big enough to snap his drive shaft,

00:10 causing 350 pounds of damage.

00:13 But when he put a damages claim in with Medway Council,

00:17 they took until late July to respond and reject his claim.

00:21 For Roger, this felt like a betrayal.

00:23 It's the Medway Council's responsibility to upkeep the highway for the residents of Medway.

00:29 I felt that, you know, they haven't kept up their responsibility to help out the residents.

00:36 Always say, you know, we're here to help the residents of Medway.

00:39 That obviously hasn't done by keeping the highway up to standards.

00:43 Roger's experience here on Burnt Oak Avenue happened many moons ago,

00:47 but it's clear the problem is still here.

00:50 Just look at this massive piece of gravel that came from the pothole just over my shoulder.

00:56 It's clear more work needs to be done.

00:59 Looking at that pothole over there, that's not just a week or two old.

01:03 That's been there for a good couple of months and nothing's been done about it.

01:08 We put Roger's concerns to the leader of Medway Council.

01:11 This was his response.

01:13 I completely understand the frustrations of people like Roger and others

01:16 where they have those circumstances.

01:18 We as a new administration, we will do everything we can,

01:21 but I absolutely recognise we are inheriting a highway system

01:25 which is not particularly fit for purposes in parts of Medway

01:29 and there's always more to be done.

01:30 The AA reported that October was the worst month

01:33 for pothole-related breakdowns in their history,

01:36 with more than 50,000 breakdowns.

01:38 The Department for Transport has announced £12m to address potholes in Medway

01:43 over the next 10 years,

01:45 but Medway Council say the government announcement won't fill in residents' concerns.

01:50 We're getting £400,000 this year, £400,000 next year,

01:55 and then a vague promise of the rest of £12m,

01:58 with no clear timeline as to when that will be here.

02:01 So it's really difficult for highways professionals to plan

02:05 and us as elected representatives to plan the strategy ahead

02:09 if we've got no idea when that funding is coming forward.

02:12 Agha Khan has been fixing cars in Medway for 30 years.

02:15 He says potholes will only get worse as temperatures continue to drop.

02:20 If you drive down any road down Medway or anywhere around this area,

02:24 you're bound to see quite a few potholes, and some of them quite bad really.

02:29 And I think coming to winter now, it can only get worse really

02:34 because the rain will wash out some of the roads and that,

02:36 and the potholes will get bigger.

02:38 We reached out to the Department of Transport for comment.

02:41 This was their response.

02:42 "We are investing a record amount of funding into tackling potholes and resurfacing roads,

02:49 which will see highway maintenance funding to local authorities increase

02:52 by around two-thirds over the next decade."

02:55 With a yellow weather warning being issued, this problem could get a whole lot worse.

03:00 Oliver Leeds of the Sacks reporting for KMTV.

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