In pictures: The shocking state of roads in Hastings and Bexhill

The dangers cannot be underestimated. As motorists focus on the road surface and swerve to avoid the holes, their attention is distracted. The risks are even more significant for cyclists and motorcyclists.

Sussex World and its weekly newspapers have never received as many complaints about the failure of national and local government to resolve the problem as we have this year. Just about everyone now knows of a motorist who has had their tyres and wheels wrecked – often multiple times.

Jacqueline Patton, who represents the Facebook group Hastings and Rother Potholes, said: “People’s property is being destroyed, people are being injured, impacting on their livelihood and lives. Ambulances are in jeopardy on the way to someone’s loved one on these dangerous, undriveable roads.

“Change is needed, an efficient way to report and a long-term plan of maintenance, proper repairs that last and do not cause a secondary hazard, quick repairs, new criteria and construction sites made to make roads safe as they go along. Take ownership and responsibility. No excuses. Resurface, repair and never let our roads get this bad again. We have had enough.”

An East Sussex Highways spokesperson said: “Since the start of the new East Sussex Highways contract in May 2023, our teams have repaired 2,488 potholes the Hastings area alone. We prioritise repairs to ensure that the potholes presenting the greatest risk are repaired as quickly as possible.

“To repair every pothole on the network regardless of whether it meets our intervention levels would cost about four times the amount currently spent, and would place an even greater burden on council tax payers.

“The majority of our investment in the county’s road network focusses on preventative maintenance such as patching and resurfacing to stop potholes appearing in the first place and we do this by looking at road condition and priorities against the available budget.

“Our highways stewards carry out regular checks on road across the county, but with more than 2,000 miles of carriageway to monitor, we would urge the public to report any defects directly to us at www.eastsussexhighways.com.

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