Potholes – frequently asked questions

Potholes develop in roads and pavements when they have been damaged, which happens more over winter.

During these months, we increase the amount of maintenance crews fixing potholes to keep the roads and pavements safe and prevent accidents, injury and the condition of the roads getting worse.

How is a pothole formed during winter?
More potholes are formed during winter, because the cold and wet weather can affect how quickly a road surface will deteriorate.

Most potholes are caused by what is known as 'freeze-thaw'. Water gets into the small cracks in the road's surface caused by normal traffic use.

When outside temperatures drop this water freezes and expands, which can cause damage under the surface of the road. When the ice melts it leaves an empty space, or a weak spot. Each time the 'freeze thaw' cycle is repeated the empty space gets bigger. Traffic driving over this weak spot can make the surface cave in, creating a pothole.

How do we fix potholes?
The potholes are filled so that the road surface is level. We aim to make permanent repairs as much as possible.

We would make a temporary repair to make the road safe if
a permanent repair can't be carried out. The reasons for this are:

• because of the location, we can't carry out the repair safely and further traffic control is needed

• if the road is wet or icy, a permanent repair would be unsuccessful.

Are only reported potholes fixed?
We fix faults based on our own highway inspections and faults that are reported from parish councils, district councils and the public.

There is currently a lot of damage to the roads, following the ice and snow over winter. To tackle this we will target roads with a number of potholes rather than responding to individual faults. We will then ‘find and fix’ all the potholes in that road.

How do we prioritise pothole filling?
In general, potholes are prioritised by severity, so if we consider it to be dangerous, it will be repaired quicker.

Following the winter damage, while we are targeting repairs by area, all potholes in an area will be found and fixed.

Does a pothole have to be a certain size before we'll fix it?
Our main concern is making the road safe. In general larger potholes, which we consider to be a danger, will be repaired before a pothole we consider to be less of a danger.

However following the winter damage, while we are targeting repairs by area, all potholes in a road will be found and fixed.

How many crews are fixing potholes?
There are currently around 70 crews fixing the potholes caused by frost damage. This includes 34 crews who are part of Kent County Council's £2million initiative, involving small to medium size companies, to continue to tackle Kent’s potholes.

What do we do when the road is really badly damaged?
The priority at the moment is to make the roads safe.

We will fill the potholes to make them safe, and at the end of winter, review the severity and longer term damage to determine if a section of road needs to be resurfaced.

Reporting a pothole

If you see a pothole, please tell us about it using our online fault reporting form or call us 24 hours a day on 08458 247 800. To help us find and repair the pothole, please give us details about its size and location.

If you are reporting more than 1 pothole in the same road, when filling in the online fault reporting form please select ‘Potholes’ then ‘Multiple potholes (same road only)’ from the drop down lists.

Important: If the issue is a hazard to public safety or anything else urgent, then call us immediately on 08458 247 800.

Further information:
http://www.kent.gov.uk

Laraine Barrie
Maidstone Liaison Officer
Kent Highways Services
01622 798308