'Pathetic' road once again crowned Nottinghamshire's worst road for potholes

A Nottinghamshire road blasted as "pathetic" has been crowned the county's worst road for potholes by residents and drivers. Westdale Lane, which runs from Mapperley to Gedling, has once again been voted Nottinghamshire's most pothole-ridden road by Nottinghamshire Live readers, after topping a similar poll last year.

Nottinghamshire County Council has targeted the long and busy road for repairs previously, with the most recent resurfacing taking place between Oakleigh Avenue and Cavendish Road in January. But there are sizable parts of the route that are still in poor condition, particularly near Welbeck Avenue, where the surface is cratered and scattered with loose chippings.

The verdict of Nottinghamshire Live's readers was echoed by those living near the lane, who heavily criticised the quality of the road surface, as they had a year before. Retiree David Wood, 76, who has lived on Westdale Lane for 40 years, said: "This stretch of the road is pathetic, the road and pavement is like what you'd see in a third-world country.

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"Some of the potholes are so big and deep that you have to swerve to miss them, one I saw was like a coffin." Mr Wood said he put in a claim for £300 after his car hit a pothole and was damaged around six months ago.

He claimed he received no response from the council. Mr Wood added: "Improvements have been made and the road from Co-op to Mapperley Top is actually quite good, but from Freda Avenue to the bottom of the lane it is still awful."

Wilbert and Doreena Tulloch of Glendale Close, which branches off from Westdale Lane, said the poor quality of the road was a safety issue. "It has gotten worse in the last couple of years, sometimes I avoid driving because I think it can be dangerous on the lane," Mr Tulloch, 83, who has lived with his wife in the area since 1988, said.

"It is very bad on the parts that still need to be repaired. Everybody around here complains about it."

"It is absolutely terrible to have all these great big potholes around the place. They only put a little bit of tarmac on it and then it all falls apart - they need to do it properly," Mrs Tulloch, 81, added.

Nottinghamshire County Council has argued highways authorities across the country are currently responding to "significant road maintenance challenges" exacerbated by severe weather conditions over the recent winter months. It has recently approved a £33 million investment into improving the county’s highways throughout the year.

Beverley Pateman, 71, who lives on Orchard Court, acknowledged the Mapperley end of the road had improved, but agreed drivers were still not satisfied with the road. "They've improved parts of it but people around here do complain a lot about the rest of it.

"It ruins people's tyres and it's not good that people have to drive around them on such a busy road. The repairs are a bit rubbish most of the time as well."

A highways manager from Nottinghamshire County Council said the authority was considering carrying out repairs on the sections of Westdale Lane which had not been resurfaced recently. "Westdale Lane is a significant length of road and we are aware that there are still sections where the surface has deteriorated and further works are required in the future.

"Whilst we can’t currently provide a timeframe, we will be considering the remaining sections for inclusion in a future programme of works. We continue to urge residents and road users to help us keep Westdale Lane and all of Nottinghamshire’s roads safe by reporting any potholes through the MyNotts app or online at nottscc.gov.uk.

“Residents will soon be able to see improvement works planned in their area, as well as completed works, at Nottshighways.co.uk or through the MyNotts app.”