News Published on : 14-Feb-2022 14:33:59

New research conducted by the UK s leading independent road safety charity IAM RoadSmart has revealed that motorists still see potholes as the biggest safety issue on Britain s roads even when compared to speeding road rage congestion or drink and drug driving. IAM RoadSmart s latest annual Safety Culture Report which has monitored drivers changing attitudes to key road safety issues since 2015 discovered that nearly four in five drivers (79 per cent) perceive potholes to be a bigger issue for them than they were three years ago. Meanwhile only five per cent of respondents saw potholes as a smaller problem compared to last year. The report gathers responses from over 2 000 motorists and found that 90 per cent of them had been affected by potholes in the past year with 32 per cent stating they had even changed route to avoid them. A further 16 per cent of those surveyed stated that they have reported a pothole to the authorities. It is currently estimated that there are some 42 675 miles of UK roads classed as being in POOR structural condition which would cost an estimated £ 11.14 billion to bring them up to a level which they could be maintained cost effectively going forward according to Asphalt Industry Alliance. These figures are also reflected by the attitudes shared in IAM RoadSmart s Safety Culture Report with over eight in ten motorists in the North West and South West sharing the opinion that potholes are a bigger problem compared to three years ago (83 per cent and 82 per cent respectively). Meanwhile only 69 per cent of Londoners thought potholes were a bigger problem compared to three years ago.