Huddersfield potholes force sale of limited edition Volvo

Feb 9 2010 by Barry Gibson, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

“But it’s not practical to have a car with a sporty suspension, the roads just aren’t good enough. I’ve bought a Peugeot 307 with big chunky 15-inch tyres.”

Mr Slumbers added: “I lived in the South for years and I never, ever had to change a tyre because I hit a pothole. I’ve never known a place like Huddersfield.”

Meanwhile, a Kirklees Council spokesman said yesterday that highways staff were working hard to deal with potholes caused by the recent cold snap.

He said: “We have assessed every street in Kirklees and begun the process of repairing the damage caused by the severe winter weather so far.

“The number of potholing gangs was increased to 10 from the usual two and they have already repaired about 3,200 potholes in less than three weeks.

“This important work has cost £90,000 to date, but the council released an extra £600,000 to deal with the damage left behind by almost a month of snow and ice.

“All councils are faced with a similar problem and it’s estimated there are well over one million potholes on British roads. We are committed to tackling the local situation as quickly as possible.

“Some of the bigger works, such as patching, are also under way and extra teams of staff remain in place.

“Obviously such a major operation takes time and could be affected by more bad weather, but we will continue working hard to complete it.”