There are claims the road has ‘massively deteriorated’ in the past eight weeks
A ramp ahead sign beside a damaged section of Colwick Loop Road near Victoria Retail Park in Nottingham.
Warning signs have been installed on what critics have described as Nottinghamshire’s “most dangerous road” due to the severity of potholes.
However, campaigners have called on the Reform-run Nottinghamshire County Council do more after the potholes were reported a week before.
The spotlight has been on the A612 Colwick Loop Road since Monday, February 16 after a video – made and shared on Facebook by Conservative Nottinghamshire County Councillor Mike Adams – showed the treacherous conditions of the road in an urgent appeal for the council to fix it.
The junction next to Marks and Spencer’s at Victoria Retail Park, Netherfield, was shown to be in a severely deteriorated state with deep potholes by the set of traffic lights.
The video has more than 40,000 views at the time of writing and since its upload he gave an update letting residents know the county council’s highways director had visited the spot on Thursday, February 19.
Cllr Adams told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) he first notified the council’s highways director of the issue on Sunday, February 15 and asked for a meeting.
He was then expecting an update from the council’s highways team on Monday (February 23) but so far “has not heard a thing”.
Instead, two road signs displaying ‘Ramp Ahead’ and ‘Slow’ heading towards Nottingham have been placed just before the damaged spot to warn drivers – Cllr Adams noticed these on February 19 on the highways director’s visit.
Potholes littered across the Colwick Loop Road A612(Image: Mike Adams)
Cllr Adams says the junction has “massively deteriorated” in the past eight weeks, claiming drivers have to slow down to five miles per hour to go over it.
He said: “It’s arguably the most dangerous road in Nottinghamshire at the moment.
“It has hundreds of thousands of journeys per year, it connects two of our bridges, it’s a 40 miles per hour zone, it’s in a braking zone.
“If you overshoot the junction there’s cars coming from the right. ABS (anti-lock) brakes stutter as you brake – if you hit a bump while your brakes are doing that you generally don’t stop when you should.
“People are swerving to avoid it, people slamming on their brakes. It all has knock-on effects of cars behind you, never mind the obvious damage to people’s vehicles.”
Cllr Adams said he was “annoyed” at the lack of action to fix the road, saying: “This is a serious problem – all we’ve got is a slow and ramp sign. After a week that’s all we’ve got… why can’t the council just fix it?”
Under the previous Conservative council the policy was for temporary repairs to be completed within 24 hours of notification but then to return within 90 days to complete a resurfacing section.
Cllr Sam Smith (Con), a county councillor who also represents the Trent Valley ward on Gedling Borough Council alongside Cllr Adams, referred to the potholes as “craters” and the road being “the surface of the moon”.
He told the LDRS: “It’s the worst part of the network in Nottinghamshire that I have to drive over every day. It’s atrocious, it’s a main thoroughfare connecting Gedling to Nottingham and other parts of the county.”
Cllr Smith said he was “shocked, horrified and disgracefully frustrated” when he noticed the two signs on his drive “over the rumble strip” on Tuesday.
He said: “What a disgrace. Is that a joke? This is what Reform’s pothole repairs look like, forget the roads, we’ll just put signs to warn you. Those signs are doing absolutely nothing to save the residents I represent.
“I’ve got a brilliant idea: instead of sending people to put signs out, send the same people to fill the potholes.”
Francis Rodrigues pictured at the Gedling Youth and Community Hub in Shearing Hill, Gedling, Nottingham(Image: Joseph Raynor/ Reach PLC)
Gedling resident Francis Rodrigues, who is part of the Gedling Village Local History and Preservation Society, said other roads in his area, such as Brooklands Drive and Lorimer Avenue, were becoming “rat runs” due to people avoiding certain roads due to their poor conditions.
He said: “The worst road for me is Avon Road up to Lambley Lane, there’s a series of ruts and you have to travel over it at three or four miles per hour to avoid damage.
“I’m a keen cyclist… it’s added danger to cyclists as they have to avoid them. If you hit a pothole with a tyre its a lot more bone shaking.”
Mr Rodrigues said he had concerns for people, particularly the elderly, tripping over and sinkholes opening up.
A general view of a damaged section of Colwick Loop Road near Victoria Retail Park in Nottingham.
The LDRS contacted Nottinghamshire County Council on Monday (February 23) for updates on pothole fixes to Colwick Loop Road in light of the news its highways director had been to visit the spot.
It was confirmed to the LDRS on Wednesday (February 24) the council would not be providing comment.
Reform-run Nottinghamshire County Council plans to spend £153 million on permanent road repairs over the next three years.
The East Midlands Combined County Authority has given it an extra £46.9 million in funding to fix potholes.
Council leader Mick Barton (Ref), told the LDRS at least £400 million extra was needed on top of other funding to ensure the roads were in a “serviceable state”.