Pensioner Wins Pothole Battle, Forces Council Repairs

0:00On March 20th, a 68-year-old driver from Berkhamstead in Herfordshire has won a court battle against his local council, forcing them, too, repair three pothole riddled roads. Derrick Bennett used Section 56 of the Highways Act 1980, which requires authorities to keep public highways in good shape at taxpayer. Expense. He sent formal notices about the bad conditions, but Harfordshire County Council didn't reply properly within the one-month deadline. The case went to St. Albans Crown Court, where a judge ordered fixes on Ivy House Lane in London Road in Berkhamstead, plus Redburn Road in nearby, Hemelheimstead, all within 20 working days. Bennett got fed up after years of dodging dangerous holes on his daily drives. He seized this as a simple public service. Anyone can do for free, using laws that date back centuries and hopes more people will step up to improve. Local streets. Meanwhile, the council noted they had already patched three other roads Bennett flagged before the hearing and have scheduled work on these.

1:02They called it a routine maintenance matter that shouldn't have reached court. This wind-spylights Britain's worsening pothole problem, with local road repairs now costing an estimated 18.6 billion pounds. Nationwide up from last year, and many surfaces not resurfaced for nearly a century on average.