Eastbourne potholes aren’t being fixed properly, residents say

Steve Harrolds lives on Belmore Road and outside his house there are lots of potholes on the road. He said workers are back regularly to fix the same holes because they’re not being filled in properly.

Steve used to work on the road so said that for a pothole to be fixed properly, which lasts 10-15 years, you need to sweep out all the dirt from the hole, dry it out, burn the edges, pour in warm tarmac, and then seal it. Instead of this Steve says he sees the workers using cold tarmac to fill the holes. This means when the tarmac sets it shrinks and has nothing to stick to so starts to break up – causing the same problem as before. He said if the hole is filled with hot tarmac it last years. Steve said he’s seen the workers take photos of the fixed holes to prove they’ve done the job, and then in a matter of a week they’re back again to do the same job again.

He said: “They’re not doing the job properly. It’s like putting a plaster on a wet fingers, it’s never going to work. It will be costing a fortune to keep fixing the same holes over and over again, it’s a continuous problem.”

The Herald put up a post on Facebook asking people about their experiences with potholes and several people complained how potholes are filled in and then start breaking again days later. Samantha Smith said: “Dallington Road only got done last week. The morning after the filling started coming out.”

Aaron French said if the job was done properly ‘then we wouldn't be repairing the roads on a yearly basis wasting time and money’.

Gary Woods said he hit a pothole that was 11cm deep in Grange Road 12 days ago. He said the pothole has been repaired but it’s already sinking and debris – some pieces as big as golf balls – is still on the road.

An East Sussex County Council spokesperson said: “Our contractor will use different methods for repairing potholes depending on the circumstances, including using proprietary cold-lay materials which enable us to repair potholes more quickly in all weathers, and when hot tarmac is not available.

“Although our preferred method for repairing potholes is to cut out a pothole back to solid tarmac, prepare the hole and fill with hot tarmac, there will be times when a hot-repair is not possible because the tarmac plant is closed such as at night, or over the Christmas and New Year break.

“Our contractor will also occasionally carry out a temporary repair where the situation prevents a permanent repair, such as on high speed roads or at busy junctions. In these situations our contractor will carry out a temporary repair and return at a later time to complete a permanent repair.

“Both hot tarmac and the cold product method have been used on Belmore Road, however the construction of the road, like many in Eastbourne, is very shallow with a thin layer of tarmac over flint, chalk and clay ground that is very prone to water and frost damage. This means repairs can fail if the ground is saturated, whichever method is used, during prolonged wet weather. The Highways Steward has inspected the potholes on Belmore Road following concerns raised and our contractor will be returning to carry out more extensive patching work to the road surface as soon as this can be arranged.

“Although we always see an increase in potholes during the winter months, the prolonged periods of wet and cold weather we have experienced in recent weeks means that potholes are forming much more quickly than normal. To deal with this, we have increased our resources by 50 per cent and our teams are working extended hours and at weekends to keep on top of the situation. Since December 1, we have repaired more than 2,150 potholes across East Sussex.

“If residents and road users are aware of potholes, they can report them to us directly via www.eastsussexhighways.com/report-a-problem/roads.”

‘Appalling’ potholes in and around Eastbourne