Potholes turned into '˜speed bumps' by Midlothian Council repairs

One resident has complained about the state of the road.

Kenneth Bell contacted the Advertiser with concerns about the potential danger to motorists following the council’s work earlier this summer to repair potholes.

The council has admitted to the Advertiser that there is an issue, and has promised to carry out more works to rectify the problem before the end of the current financial year.

Mr Bell highlighted the entire length of Bogwood Road, particularly from Mayfield Roundabout to the bus terminus at Keir Hardie Drive, as the main hotspot for potholes filled in too high, leaving lumps in the road.

He said: “They are filling in the potholes to such an extent that they are like speed bumps.

“It’s ridiculous. I live in John Humble Street, and from there to the roundabout there are lots of these bumps.

“People are driving on the other side of the road to avoid them. I’m not alone. I see it every day – people avoiding the bumps on the road by taking dangerous measures to avoid them.

“There is no point in trying to count them, there are so many. Towards Easthouses it is just bumps all the way down.

“The work seems to be carried out at night to fill the potholes as there are more bumps appearing every day.

“I don’t know how bus drivers haven’t complained about it. As they are driving down that road everyday.

“When you get on the bus it’s a very bumpy ride all the way down Bogwood Road.”

In June Midlothian Council put together three squads of workers to tackle the large number of potholes caused by the ‘Beast from the East’ earlier this year.

Using both internal and external resources, the council spent an extra £15,000 a week to repair the damage done to Midlothian’s roads following the arctic conditions of February and March, allowing around 700 potholes to be filled a week. However, Mr Bell believes this increased spend was a “waste of money” given the quality of the repairs.

He said: “It’s just a waste of time. Why not just bite the bullet and re-surface it.

“Every street in this area is the same. With these bumps everywhere.

“The council keep saying they have no money, but this makes the situation worse. It’s been a waste of money.

“People are still having to avoid what were potholes but are now bumps.

“They have not levelled the road properly. It’s just bumps all over the place.”

A spokesperson for Midlothian Council promised that repairs will take place.

He said: “We have recently make temporary repairs to the surface on Bogwood Road. In some places these have been temporary repairs on top of previous repair work which has led to parts of the road being uneven.

“However, this will be rectified with full resurfacing of the road, between Lawfield Road and Easthouses Road, scheduled for before the end of the current financial year.”