WSCC County Councillor for Langley Green and Ifield East tells us: “Earlier in the week I was truly shocked to see the state of Langley Drive in my County Division of Langley Green and Ifield East. I know there are potholes all over the town (and the county) but the two I found on Langley Drive looked more like bomb craters and I reported them in immediately.
“WSCC responded fairly instantly ‘repairing’ the holes the next day. However, residents immediately noticed the poor quality of the repairs and many contacted me to ask why, with so many previous repairs on this stretch of road, a better job has not been done. The repairs are so clearly inadequate and breakdowns inevitable, so it really is time to stop wasting money and do a proper job.
“Residents are increasingly frustrated and angry to see their council tax wasted in this way.”

“I hope money will be found, and soon, because looking at the (now) 2 day old repairs today with my colleague and Leader of Crawley Borough Council, Cllr Michael Jones, it is clear the repairs are already beginning to break down.

“Michael has been calling on our Highways Authority, West Sussex to use the ‘windfall’ money they will get from the Borough Council’s decision to charge second home owners and owners of empty homes more council tax, to address the number one issue residents raise, namely potholes. It’s certainly clear that’s what my residents want to see.”

Michael Jones said: “The changes we have made at Borough on council tax will add £70,000 to the borough council’s coffers – and around £500,000 for the county council, because they receive the lion’s share. This is a significant windfall for the county council which we will have delivered for them.

“I am writing to the County Council Leader, Paul Marshall urging him to use this additional money for a ring-fenced pothole fund, to increase the capacity for and quality of repairs.

“West Sussex is the Highways Authority responsible for our roads and pavements. They have the budget not Crawley Borough Council – we have delivered them additional money, now I want to see the Conservative leadership provide a better service. This additional money is an opportunity for them to stop wasting money on short term fixes like the ones I have seen today on Langley Drive, and improve our roads right across the County.”