RAC patrols rescued some 3,426 motorists whose vehicles may have
fallen victim to the UK’s pothole-ridden roads in the first three
months of 2020, more than during the same period last year.
Data from the RAC Pothole Index* shows this
represented a massive 64% increase of 1,337 compared to October
to December 2019 (2,089) and 150 more than the first quarter last
year (3,276) – a rise of 4.5%.
The start of the coronavirus lockdown – which came
into force on 23rd March – however meant there
were nine days when far fewer cars were on the country’s roads,
so the actual number of pothole-related breakdowns may have been
higher under normal conditions.
In the first quarter of 2020 breakdowns resulting
from damaged shock absorbers, broken springs and distorted wheels
that are most likely to be attributable to poor road surfaces
made up 1.6% of all the RAC’s call-outs for its individual
members**. This was considerably up on Q4 2019 when the figure
stood at 0.9% and marginally up on the same period a year ago –
1.5%.
The RAC’s Pothole Index, which is an accurate
long-term indicator of the health of the UK’s roads, suggests the
overall standard of the roads has improved a little as the Index currently
stands at 1.6, down from 2.3 in the same period last year and
slightly down on Q4 2019 (1.7). This does mean however that
drivers are still 1.6 times more likely to break down as a result
of pothole-related damage than they were back in 2006 when the
RAC first started collecting data.
While winter was relatively mild overall, the UK
suffered catastrophic flooding in some areas between November
2019 and February 2020, which is bound to have taken its toll on
overall road surface quality.
RAC head of roads policy Nicholas Lyes said: “The
jump in pothole-related breakdowns from the last three months of
the year to the first quarter of the next year is always the
largest as winter weather has the greatest effect of all in
wearing down our roads.
“Many parts of the country suffered very wet weather
conditions throughout February, though the winter overall was
generally mild. While the wet conditions mercifully gave way to
much drier weather as we headed into March, it’s still likely
that the storms and floods were major factors in why the number
of pothole-related breakdowns was higher than the same period
last year.
“While millions of cars are mostly confined to
streets and driveways during the coronavirus lockdown, people are
more reliant than ever on their vehicles to buy food and
important household items. The last thing any driver needs on the
way to do their essential weekly shop is to suffer a nasty
pothole-related breakdown that puts their car out of action,
especially with fewer garages open than usual. This means the
quality of local roads is, ironically, is as important as
ever.
“In his Budget in March, the Chancellor committed to
funding our local roads and it is clear that the economic
recovery as the UK emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic will need
to be built on solid infrastructure – which of course needs to
include good quality roads.
“Moreover, it will also be interesting to see if
lower traffic volumes during the UK’s lockdown will help prevent
further deterioration of roads as fewer wheels going over
weaknesses in the asphalt should contribute to less surface
wear.”
To report a pothole, or to find out if you suffer
from damage from one and wonder if you can claim for
compensation, visit the RAC’s
pothole online guide. The
RAC has also published a
guide on looking after cars during the
pandemic.
Ends
Notes to Editors
* The RAC Pothole Index is a 12-month rolling measure
of the share of pothole fault breakdowns compared to 2006,
corrected for seasonal weather effects and improving longer term
vehicle reliability Data has been collected by the RAC since
2006. Data excludes punctures.
** The RAC provides peace of mind breakdown cover for
more than 12m private and business drivers. The figures quoted
are based on its 2m-plus individual members who buy policies
direct from the RAC.
