{"id":84463,"date":"2024-03-08T17:33:45","date_gmt":"2024-03-08T17:33:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/?p=84463"},"modified":"2024-05-30T14:27:17","modified_gmt":"2024-05-30T13:27:17","slug":"pothole-problem-unites-cyclists-and-drivers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2024\/03\/08\/pothole-problem-unites-cyclists-and-drivers\/","title":{"rendered":"Pothole problem unites cyclists and drivers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

‘You have to drive as if you are drunk to avoid them,’ says one motorist <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

ABOUT 22,800 potholes were filled in Cardiff in 2023 – but not before causing injuries to cyclists and drivers and damage to their vehicles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here some victims share their stories, and the council explains its never-ending job of fixing the problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Driver Stuart Bolter-Shone said driving over potholes has worsened his back problems. He has gone from working over 50 hours a week as a chef to 16. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s so many potholes in the road that to miss them you have to drive as if you are drunk,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dan Allsobrook, part of campaign group Cardiff Cycle City, got two punctures from a pothole covered by a flooded cycle path. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe state of the roads does discourage people from cycling,\u201d said Mr Allsobrook. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA lot of potholes get filled in with tarmac and then a few days later they open again,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Cardiff Council spokesperson said: \u201cPotholes are repaired temporarily until a long-term solution can be provided – which requires more extensive patching or resurfacing of the road.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Potholes are particularly dangerous for cyclists because they can knock someone off a bike. Phil Swan recently fell off his bike after hitting a pothole hidden by a puddle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cyclist Pieter Naaijkens, who takes his daughter to school by bike, said that more preventative resurfacing is needed to manage the pothole problem. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey are mainly patching up the worst issues,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cardiff Council said: \u201cThe council uses the resources available to best effect by carrying out a variety of road works across the highway network including reconstruction, re-surfacing, surface patching and treatments as well as temporary repairs to potholes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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