Potholes cause travel misery – VIDEO SLIDESHOW

Wild winter weather has resulted in thousands of the dangerous craters emerging on routes across the county.

Derbyshire County Council said it had received 3,881 complaints about potholes between last October and December.

On the Derbyshire Times’ Facebook page, Diane Thompson said: “Haddon Road and Hucknall Avenue in North Wingfield are terrible. My boyfriend is disabled with a degenerative spine and when I go over the potholes when driving him as a passenger in my car it leaves him in terrible pain.”

Nicky Boam said four cars had sustained tyre and suspension damage as a result of potholes on Green Lane in Dronfield.

He added: “The road needs shutting and a complete rebuild.”

A huge hole on the A619 Baslow Road, near the Robin Hood Inn, is of particular concern for Dales drivers.

A Derbyshire County Council spokesman said: “In October to December 2013, 3,881 potholes were reported compared with 4,088 in the same months in 2012. These figures include potholes reported to us by the public and reported by our highways inspectors. All the reported potholes have been repaired.

“We inspect all roads regularly – how often they are inspected depends on whether they are a main road, through road or a residential access road. Potholes are more likely in the winter because of the weather conditions. If anyone knows of a pothole that hasn’t been mended, report it to us online at www.derbyshire.gov.uk/reportit.”

Potholes are formed by water penetrating the asphalt surface of a road through cracks caused by traffic. When temperatures plunge, the water freezes, expands and causes the surface to rupture. When the ice melts, it leaves a void below the surface, which caves in under the stress of vehicles and eventually forms a pothole.

The Government has provided more than £3bn to authorities across England to help tackle potholes. Roads minister Robert Goodwill said: “The Government is serious about tackling potholes. They pose a serious problem.”

It is estimated Britain’s pothole-ridden roads cost motorists £730m a year in repairs.