Pothole Nightmare For Cyclists

Custom hivis vests will protect you from many of the dangers cyclists have to deal with, but what about potholes?

The recent bad weather across the UK has caused a number of serious potholes to appear in roads, making cycling conditions more treacherous than ever.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling announced that he would invest an extra £100 million to help councils tackle the potholes that have appears in recent weeks and months. This was on top of the £75 million that has already been announced for the Pothole Action Fund. 

It is thought there are over two million potholes across the country, that need to be filled in.

Despite this announcement a cycling charity has called the money too little too late, for many cyclists.

“Any funding which will help improve our roads is welcome, but it does not change the fact it is still too little too late,” said Cycling UK’s senior campaigns officer Sam Jones.

“Giving money simply to fill potholes is the same as if a doctor had put a broken leg in plaster before setting the fracture. The bone is still weak, poorly healed and more likely to break again.”

Roads should be improved so that they are less susceptible to pot holes, and more money should be given to completely resurfacing roads rather than just filling in holes which results in patchwork like road surfaces. 

The charity Cycling UK argues that pothole refiling does nothing to strengthen the road surface itself, meaning this is not a suitable solution to the problem of potholes for cyclists.