Lindfield resident calls for ‘enormous’ pothole to be fixed after damaging wheel

Guy Parsons said he phoned the council three weeks ago to report the pothole near Hanson Asphalt in College Road.

He also said he reported it through www.fixmystreet.com and via the council’s own website but said it had still not been fixed.

“It seems to me that this is in the most severe category of potholes,” said Guy, adding that the council aims to repair the most serious potholes within five working days.

“Roads are an essential service and if they can’t fix them within the timescale that they promise then they shouldn’t promise it,” he said.

Guy said that his left front wheel went into the pothole on Wednesday morning (March 24).

He said he was driving back to Lindfield after dropping his four-year-old daughter off at nursery and had to move over to avoid an oncoming vehicle.

“I had no alternative but to go over the pothole and it’s totalled my tyre,” he said, adding that he now has to pay for repairs.

“The most frustrating thing is that I reported this three weeks ago,” said Guy.

“The pothole’s even worse when there’s been rain because it gets full of water and becomes even more difficult to spot.”

Guy said he would like to warn other drivers of the pothole, especially cyclists and motorcyclists.

A West Sussex County Council spokesman said: “We are concerned to hear of any accident and take the maintenance and repair of roads in West Sussex very seriously.

“Pothole repairs have been scheduled for College Road and the work will be done as soon as practicable.

“Repairing defects, such as potholes, is done on a priority basis, dependent on size and depth. Once reported and assessed as significant enough to warrant a repair, the majority of potholes are dealt with within 28 days, or sooner, dependent on severity.”