ROADS in the New Forest could be among the worst-hit if a plague of potholes builds up in Hamp-shire over the next few weeks.

After battling with the floods and then snow and ice, highways bosses in the west of the county are bracing themselves for yet another bumpy ride caused by the weather.

A combination of flooding and then a freeze-up while the ground was still saturated was the one thing they didn't want.

But their worst fears have been realised, with temperatures dropping to as low as minus eight degrees Celsius in the early hours of New Year's Eve. The county's western area surveyor Alan Giles explained that the most vulnerable roads were the ones which were originally gravel and have now had a dressing of Tarmac on top which has built up over the years.

Many of the country roads in the Forest come into that category and there could also be fears over stretches of some of the bigger roads, including the A35.

"The water in the gravel turns to ice. That expands and it can cause the surfaces of the road to crumble," Mr Giles explained.

He added that the more built-up areas were less likely to be badly-hit because of the better drainage system which takes a lot of the water away.

The county spent well over £1 million on battling with the floods and during the past week it has had to turn to its considerable stocks of grit and salt to keep the roads as safe as possible during the cold snap, with staff and contractors working through the night.

Even then, they have not been able to cover some of the minor roads and streets and the early work was hampered when snow, rain and ice covered grit which had already been put down.