Potholes blamed on 'one of the wettest winters' - but it rained less than usual
Data provided by the Met Office shows the standard response from Lancashire County Council doesn't stand up to much scrutiny
Hello and welcome to The Lancashire Lead.
Potholes are never far from the minds of voters - how can they be when every journey is a reminder?
No party at Lancashire County Council could solve the issue completely - even if Reform UK did campaign on precisely that when they said they would ‘fill every pothole’.
The reality is the £650m backlog in road repairs is beyond the means of the authority.
But the roads are, today, in a particularly bad state and critics believe the issue has gotten worse, not better.
The reason given for that is - the weather. But how accurate are claims that we had ‘one of the wettest winters on record’.
For Lancashire, not even slightly.
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Lancashire briefing
✂️ The new incarnation of Preston’s Old Tram Bridge will open on 22 May, the city council has announced. The long-awaited confirmation of the opening date comes less than 24 hours after a council meeting at which the authority quashed what cabinet member for community wealth building Valerie Wise described as a “rumour” that the structure would be accessible to the public before the official ceremonial opening had taken place. She said that was “not true”. It was revealed earlier this month that the second half of May was being eyed for the opening after delays to remaining paint works caused by the wet weather since the start of the year. The cross-river connection between Avenham Park and Penwortham was cut in February 2019 after an inspection found that the previous bridge was at risk of sudden collapse. Work on the £8.2m replacement started in the summer of 2024 after funding was secured the previous year as part of Preston City Council’s bid for cash from the government’s Levelling Up Fund. That followed a local campaign for the project to be included in the proposed schemes to be pitched to ministers. The authority says further details of the opening event will follow in the coming weeks.
🗳️ Political parties have reacted to the resignation of a Green councillor in Lancaster which is expected to spark a by-election. Isabella Metcalfe-Riener, who was also a university student, was elected two years ago but is now moving away for work. According to the Green Party, she she has made a valuable contribution to Lancaster politics and, especially, in representing young people. Her party also said she played an important role in helping Green MP Hannah Spencer’s recent by-election victory in Manchester. However, the Labour Party now claims Lancaster residents ‘deserve a full-time councillor’. And Labour has questioned the ex-councillor’s attendance at meetings and the length of term served by her. Isabella was elected by voters in the Castle ward in the city centre while studying on a post-graduate course at Lancaster University. Now, a by-election is expected on Thursday, May 21.
🍎 Plans to develop Bacup Market have been approved by Rossendale Council, including a landmark wooden canopy and amphitheatre events space. Councillors say the plan’s approval marks a ‘significant milestone’ in the town centre’s regeneration. The aim is to attract more visitors to Bacup and encourage people to stay longer in the town centre, day and night. The current market site is on a triangle-shaped plot behind taller buildings, with narrow access and a low visual profile. But the planned new timber canopy will provide shelter for market traders and visitors, and its height and appearance will attract people too, the council says. Below will be new seating and a public amphitheatre space to create a ‘distinctive focal point’, And the movement of people throughout the wider town centre will be improved, with some of old market units being demolished to create more space and better access from the surrounding streets and lanes.
Potholes blamed on ‘one of the wettest winters’ - but it rained less than usual
By Luke Beardsworth
The state of Lancashire’s roads being attributed to ‘one of the wettest winters on record’ is not an accurate statement.
That is the verdict of analysis by The Lancashire Lead after working with the Met Office this week.
The Reform UK administration at Lancashire County Council has been under fire from opposition councillors - and the public - for much of this year due to the amount of potholes on the roads.
Cllr Azhar Ali, leader of the Progressive Lancashire official opposition – a coalition of independents and the Green Party – said in February of the current condition of Lancashire’s roads that residents were “sick and tired of replacing their damaged suspension [and getting] punctures [and] ripped tyres”.
And Cllr Mark Jewell, the Lib Dem who represents Preston South West, has accused Reform of breaking a pre-election pledge to fill “every pothole”. He added: “We have seen potholes like craters on the moon on our streets.
“This is, in part, due to the ‘blobbing’ repairs undertaken by the previous administration that are now falling…[but we] also need to invest more money for more targeted repairs to get on top of the sorry state of our roads. Do it once, do it properly.”
The answer back from County Hall - from elected members of Reform UK and the authority itself - has been to repeatedly blame a particularly wet winter for the damage to the roads.
Cllr Goldsworthy, Reform UK’s cabinet member for highways and transport, said in February that ‘the roads are in a terrible state and have been since Christmas.’
He added: “I get [that] it’s a stick to beat [us] with, but…the last 6-8 weeks have done terrible damage – and we will get on top of it.”
And a spokesperson for the County Council said this month: “We know people are frustrated by the number of potholes after one of the wettest winters on record, which has caused widespread damage to road surfaces.”
But by every metric, the claim that Lancashire has had one of the wettest winters on record is untrue.
