Potholes in Cowick | Spot the difference

At the Exeter Highways And Traffic Orders meeting on  Tuesday 22 April, elected members received a presentation from David Whitton, Head of Highways, Capital Development and Waste, where he gave on update on the state of Devon's Highways.

The presentation covered many topics:

- impacts of winter weather  - 1340 fallen trees; 176 bank slips; 4600 reported flooding incidents

- introduction of Members Information Pack 

- building the case for more capital funding - Devon highways budget and road condition index; and

- examples of efficiencies - recycling of materials e.g. reedbed treatment of gully waste and surface dressing.

David Whitton also mentioned that Devon County County Council needs to spend £64m per year to maintain Devon's highway network in it's 2012 condition - however, this year's budget is only £34m.

So, DCC  are working to maintain Devon's busy A and B roads and slow down deterioration as much as possible elsewhere.

But of most interest to me was the bit on repairing potholes...

What is a pothole? 

Apparently a pothole a fault in the road which measures at least 300mm in diameter and 40mm in depth. 

Anything smaller than this is not considered to be pothole and will not be repaired.

How to report a pothole?

The preferred method of reporting potholes is to use DCC's on-line reporting form but most use the Highways Customer Service Centre on 0845 155 1004.

I sometimes use CTC smartphone app Fill That Hole and if local residents contact me, I'll pass their concerns on to Cowick's Neighbourhood Highways Officer

According to the Fix That Hole league table, Devon sits at 130 out of 214 highways authorities with

1655 reported

1327 open

  312 fixed

so that makes a 19% fixed rate

What happens next?

Once DCC have received your report , they aim to repair the pothole the next working day on main roads and within seven working days on minor roads.

David Whitton went on to explain the process to fixing potholes.

Category 3-6 Potholes

- clean and cut out

- apply bitumen and bond to edge

- place and compact hot-lay asphalt

Teams can do about 10 of these a day

Category 7-11 Potholes

- clean and remove loose materia

- apply bitumen and bond to edge

- place and compact cold-lay material

This method is more expensive, but teams can do 20 of these a day. 

From DfT Highways Maintenance Efficiency Programme Prevention and A Better Cure pothole review 2012

RIGHT FIRST TIME DELIVERY

Current Practice

7.8 Proprietary cold materials may be laid quickly with the advantage of ‘make safe’ repairs minimising traffic disruption. They may, however, be less durable." (p38)

The same document goes on...

QUALITY CONTROL AND SUPERVISION

7.17 There is often minimal, if any, direct supervision or quality control of pothole repairs. Contractors undertaking the work will carry out normal managerial supervision of operatives but this is not production control of the end product. Local highway authorities often rely on contractors self certification, or on random quality checks. Auditing contractors’ method statements should be an important step in managing quality.

7.18 Some local highway authorities have instigated a regime of before, during and after photographs for defect repair, similar to the process set out in the ADEPT report. This provides evidence of the initial defect and the completed repair and is available for review as necessary. Ideally, any pothole reported by the public can be completed by responding automatically with a photograph of the repair.

In that case here's before and after pictures of a large pothole in Bowhay Lane, near the junction with Surbiton Crescent 

BEFORE | 03/04/14

AFTER | 26/04/14

 In particular look at the narrow tip at the top of the after photo:

CLOSE-UP | 26/04/14

I'm guessing that this part of the original defect didn't meet the size criteria for repair?

Further along Bowhay Lane, near the junction with Merrivale Vale, the quality of the patch is even more questionable:

AFTER | 26/04/14

I do hope that in both instances these are temporary repairs 

UPDATE 10/06/14

i've discovered that the categories mentioned above refer to the ROAD that the potholes are on, rather than the severity of the pothole!

Within Cowick, for example:

Category 4 - County Primary Route

Cowick Lane, Buddle Lane and Dunsford Road

Category 8 - Minor Collector Road

Bowhay Lane

Category 9 - Service Road (primarily for residents, but also a through road)

Surbiton Crescent

Category 10 - Minor Service Road  (cul-de-sac)

Solar Crescent

More information can be found under Devon County Council's Highways Briefing for Members