Frustration over Croydon Council's pothole policy

“Squired - Agreed. Lambeth are by far the worst council. Has anybody driven around the one way system in West Norwood? It is a death trap with cars swerving in and out to avoid the canyons in the road. It probably does not help that there is a bus depot on the road.

I have complained to Lambeth council but it all falls on deaf ears.”

“The council are useless.
Road tax is a con and drivers are clobbered harder than anyone with taxes, yet in return get damaged, congested shoddy roads which damage vehicles and decrease their lifespan.
They will probably be blaming it on the winter being cold again, like it has been for a few years now. Snow seems their favourite excuse yet isn't it those lazy swines who are meant to plan for snow and yet always fail?”

“There is a pothole near where I live on the Selhurst Road which opens up every time it rains and I would say is about 6 inches deep. This fills up with water and debris which the gets sprayed everywhere when a vehicle goes through it. When the rain has passed, some come along and dumps a load of tarmac in it. It's nothing like a "repair" - it's a band-aid on something that needs stitches.

Next time it rains, the tarmac breaks up and the hole reappears. The reason why CC can't afford to fix the roads properly is because they're wasting money on shoddy workmanship like this.”

“Although the roads in Croydon are bad, they are definitely not as bad as Lambeth.

Some areas of Croydon have seen complete road resurfacing, such as down near to Croydon University Hospital. In South Croydon the pavements were marked up for road resurfacing back at the start of 2012 (i.e. marking on the pavement where bus lanes, cycle lanes, etc. are on the road so that they can be re-added post resurfacing). As of today that section of road still hasn't been resurfaced. Personally I'd like to know why. Someone will have been paid by the council to mark up these roads, financed by us taxpayers. Have they now decided not to resurface these roads, or will someone be back again marking the pavements (more money spent) a few months from now?

The trenches formed by the many holes along the stretch of road by Whitgift School are a big issue for me. For people travelling into Croydon to shop (or eat, or for an evening out, or whatver else) it immediately helps reinforce the impression that Croydon is a dump. These holes also pose a real danger for someone on two wheels, not just from the holes themselves, but also from the sheer volume of stones/gravel from where the road is falling apart. Stones/gravel sent flying from the road can also hit pedestrians. I've experienced it and I can tell you that it hurts. I'd hate to think what might happen if they hit a child in the face, which is a real possibility.”

“The3rd there is no such thing as Road Tax, it was abolished in 1937. It is now Vehicle Excise Duty, based on emissions, and the money paid goes into the general Government coffers. Road building and maintenance comes from general taxes, VAT, income tax etc.

My route to work is littered with potholes, all of them in Croydon. My journey takes me through Sutton and Merton, and roads in both of these boroughs are far better than Croydon. Only Surrey's roads are worse than Croydon's.”

“I wish they'd send the boys down to the Brighton Road alongside Whitgift School. The bus lane looks like it has been hit with mortar fire in places. You could get lost in some of the holes if you jumped in.”

“Isnt our road tax supposed to pay for the up keep of our roads? What on earth are they spending all that money on?”