County councillor under fire over potholes in Horncastle area

Coun Patricia Bradwell represents Woodhall Spa at County Hall and attended a parish council meeting last Tuesday.

She outlined plans for major road improvements in the Woodhall Spa area which she revealed had been scheduled for July.

She explained the date had been set to avoid a clash with a 40’s Festival that attracts thousands of visitors.

She also said the work - on Tattershall Road and Witham Road - would be completed before the summer holidays when the tourist season is at its peak in Woodhall.

Coun Bradwell also told parish councillors crews were repairing ‘more potholes than ever in the area’.

However, her comments brought a swift response from Coun Andy Hunter who questioned why the improvements could not be carried out earlier - and the number of potholes that had been repaired.

He said: “The condition of local roads is a major concern. They are in an appalling state.

“People I speak to want something done now - not in July.

“It’s too little, too late. It’s not good enough. It means people will be spending hundreds on expensive repairs bills for their cars.”

Several councillors highlighted a number of pothole ‘hot spots’, including a road in Martin Fen.

Coun Bradwell was told several vehicle owners had submitted compensation claims to the County Council after damage allegedly caused by the road surface.

In response, Coun Bradwell said she was doing everything she could as ward councillor to raise issues.

She added more money was being spent on road repairs in the Woodhall area than most other places in the county.

She also denied the work had been approved because of the number of compensation claims.

Coun Bradwell said extra teams had been brought in to deal with a backlog of pothole repairs.

However, workers on the repair teams were also employed on gritting crews.

Because of recent bad weather, some repairs had been cancelled because staff could not work 24 hours a day.

Coun Bradwell added: “We have 5,500 miles of roads to maintain in Lincolnshire and people need to remember our budget has been slashed by more than half.

“We are doing the best we can.”