Bristol has recently been dubbed the country’s ‘pothole capital’ which may not have come as a surprise to many drivers. But, where are some of the city’s most chewed-up roads?
Thanks to a Freedom of Information request filed by BristolWorld, we can reveal the roads with the most recorded potholes during 2022 - and the numbers might shock you. Some of the names on the list will be expected as they include key routes in and out of Bristol which carry thousands of motorists each week. But, there are some residential roads that are in desperate need of repair.
Bristol City Council’s cabinet member for transport, Councillor Donald Alexander has acknowledged that “potholes are a pain for any for any road user” in a guest blog post for Marvin Rees, recently. He also insists work is being carried out around the clock to fix Bristol’s roads.
He wrote: “Our teams work hard throughout the year to keep our road surfaces in good condition, making sure that Bristol’s streets and footways are safe for everyone to use. Between 2016/17 and 2021/22 the number of potholes on Bristol’s roads were reduced from 4649 to 1838, this is a 60% decrease. Over the last 12 months, the highways team has repaired over 2,500 potholes on our roads, footpaths, and bridges and we’ve averaged an impressive 691 total defect repairs each month.”
With this in mind, here are the worst roads in Bristol for potholes:
1. Passage Road, Henbury
Passage Road was the stretch of road with the highest number of potholes recorded by Bristol City Council with 86. The potholes were scattered across the entire road with the largest measuring 2.4m x 2.4m in size and requiring a section of the street to be closed while it was tarmacked.
2. Cheltenham Road, Montpellier
There were 46 recorded potholes in Cheltenham Road. Several were reported outside both Montpellier High School and number 154.
3. Portway, Shirehampton
There were 35 recorded potholes in the Portway. Many of the holes were large in size with one measuring 5m in length.
4. Gloucester Road, Horfield
There were 35 recorded potholes in Gloucester Road. Most of the potholes were logged outside businesses along the stretch of road with the largest measuring 2m x 2m in size.