'There's no hope for this country': Local slams pothole repairs in Kent as 'appalling'
Motorists in Kent have said pothole works carried out by the county council have already begun to lift from a road, just days after they were patched.
Several defects were repaired on Green Lane, near to Maidstone, on Thursday as part of efforts to improve roads in the county.
Two days later locals said the repairs were beginning to crumble, with one resident saying "bits" are coming off around freshly patched areas.
Angela Thomsett told ITV Meridian the "workmanship" on the repairs is "appalling" and said the repairs were a "waste of money".
"As you can see they have just slapped tar in and stomped it down," she said.
"If this is British workmanship at its best there is no hope for this country. This is a waste of taxpayers money."
Kent County Council has said it is dealing with a significant number of potholes in the county.
In extreme circumstances the authority does complete temporary repairs so that roads are safe, but further repairs will be needed to fully fix the problem.
In a statement about the number of potholes in the county the council said: "The freezing and snowy conditions during December and January have lead to an increase in potholes on Kent’s roads, and, as a result we’ve received 5 times the usual number of reports.
"Our crews are working days, evenings and weekends to make repairs and prioritise those that need to be made safe. While we tackle this, it means it will unfortunately take us longer than our usual published timescales for routine, non-urgent problems.
"Our crews always aim to do a first-time, quality and permanent fix but there are times when it isn’t possible to carry out a permanent repair straight away. This could be because there may be an underlying problem with the road surface that needs to be investigated, it might be too wet or cold for permanent material to adhere properly or if the road (or part of it) will need to close to carry out the repair safely.
"In these cases, our crews will carry out a temporary repair to remove the immediate danger and enable people to use the road safely and will return at a later date to make a permanent repair.
"We understand the frustration for road users, and our crews are working as hard as they can to make repairs as quickly as they can. Please be respectful to our crews who are out fixing the roads for you, and if you do spot a pothole, please use our online reporting tool via www.kent.gov.uk/potholes."
ITV Meridian has contacted Kent County Council for further information about the repairs conducted on Green Lane.