Could this big pothole be the worst repaired in Totton?

Gillian Lodge, 62, from Totton said she fears that the pothole on Hammonds Lane will damage cars driving through it and has urged Hampshire County Council to fix them.

The retired primary school headteacher has been trying to alert the county council to the 'botched repairs'.

She said the hole, has been repaired multiple times since November 2022 but weeks after the repairs are carried out, it goes back to its original state.

READ MORE: What a whopper! Is this Southampton's biggest pothole?

Speaking to the Echo, Gillian who has lived in Totton since 2006 said: “It’s just the fact that there are so many potholes in Totton and Calmore, and we are paying council tax to get it fixed and someone has to be accountable for these bad repairs.

“I heard on Facebook, I don’t know if it’s true, that they come and repair these for 10 minutes and then go off somewhere else.

“If you look at the state of this pothole, it makes sense.”

Hammonds Lane, Totton (Image: Newsquest, Jose Ramos)

She said as a driver she often has to drive in the middle of the road to avoid getting the wheels in the pothole, fearing that it may damage them.

“They’re really dangerous”, the 62-year-old said, “I know people who have had their wheels damaged when they’re driving on them. It’s just frustrating.

“It’s an accident waiting to happen, if a car drives on the middle of the road and then another one comes into the road, there could be a crash.”

She added: “When other companies are doing road works and they patch up the road nicely, why can’t the council just fix it properly?

“When we’re paying for them to be repaired, they are done so badly, it’s just not cost-effective.”

In her efforts, Gillian even wrote to the leader of Hampshire County Council, Cllr Rob Humby about the issue and has been told her message would be forwarded to Councillor Nick Adams-King, a member for Universal Services.

As previously reported Hampshire County Council is to receive an extra £132m to fix roads and potholes over the next 10 years.

The money awarded has been redirected from HS2 fund, after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak axed the northern leg of the long-awaited high-speed rail network.

A Hampshire County Council spokesperson said: “In order to respond quickly to reported road defects it is sometimes necessary to temporarily infill potholes, whilst a permanent repair is arranged.

"This is the case in Hammonds Lane where the potholes are in the centre of the carriageway and a temporary closure is needed in order to fix them properly, which will take place in due course.

"In July last year, the County Council confirmed an additional £22.5 million over three years specifically dedicated to reactive road repairs.

"In recent years we have seen an increased demand for pothole repairs arising from the impacts of severe weather and changing weather patterns, and the extra funding that we now have, together with recently announced additional funding from the Government, will help us to address more potholes more quickly.

"Our focus remains on making our roads stronger in the short term, and for any repairs that we do to be permanent first-time fixes wherever possible."