The poorly repaired potholes in and around Didcot are damaging vehicles and putting safety at risk, according to a county councillor.

Ian Snowdon, who represents Didcot West, has criticised Oxfordshire County Council, the highways authority, for its programme of pothole repairs.

According to Mr Snowdon, highways bosses are “presiding over a complete failure that is leaving residents to drive on dangerous roads, damaging vehicles and putting safety at risk”.

Mr Snowdon said residents across Didcot and the surrounding area are becoming increasingly frustrated by poor-quality pothole repairs that fail within days, and serious potholes being left for months despite repeated reports through the council’s FixMyStreet portal.

One motorist Laurence Williams said: “It’s no good to make roads safer by introducing lower speed limits everywhere if the roads are in the shocking state of repair.

“This is a highways department that wants to encourage cyclists yet puts them in harm’s way by not giving them decent road surfaces to cycle on.

“Prioritise fixing the roads before all the other nonsense they seem to be obsessed with.”

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Ian Snowdon, who represents Didcot West (Image: Oxford Mail)

Some people argued the council’s own website, Fixmystreet, isn’t fit for purpose and isn’t regularly checked.

One critic Simon Hall said: “We lost two tyres the other day due to the large trench at the Headington roundabout.

“It is very dangerous as the hole leads directly onto a fast dual carriageway and we could have suffered a blow out with kids in the car.”

Similarly, Harriet Jones, said: “The one at the top of Abingdon Road has been like it for months, the same as the ones between Marsh Bridge Road about and Tesco.

“It would be a different story if someone from the council hit a pothole that would soon be repaired though.”

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Locals agreed with the councillor that the current method of fixing potholes doesn’t make the repairs significantly permanent.

Motorist Melvyn Trehearne said: “They fixed my end of Queensway six months ago, but a large one appeared on the side of the road.

“To tell you the truth, I don’t think I’ll bother asking someone to fix my street, because by the time they come and fix it, one or two more will appear.”

A pothole. (Image: Newsquest)

Other residents argued not enough of the budget is being spent on repairs and is instead being focused on less important projects.

Penny-Anne Payne said: “It’s not just potholes that need doing there are pavements that need redoing too. Less road signs more money available more repairs done properly.”

A spokesperson for Oxfordshire County Council said: “Oxfordshire County Council has a limited budget to maintain roads, paths and cycle paths.

“So we can best manage this, we fix reported potholes based on the risk that they pose to all road users. At the same time, we carry out scheduled maintenance.”

The county council has been contacted for further comment.

GWR, with headquarters in Swindon, runs services linking London to the south-west of England and South Wales. It is expected to return to public ownership on December 13.

A spokesperson for the operator said they would continue to work closely with the Department for Transport (DfT).

GWR operates and manages Oxford’s railway station, where Network Rail is staging a multi-million pound revamp and is planning a new western entrance.

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Great Western Railway spokesman John Carter said: “We welcome the clarity provided by Friday’s announcement and will continue to work closely with the Department for Transport as we move into public ownership.

 “Throughout this process, our priority will be maintaining a punctual, reliable service for customers while continuing to support regional growth and connectivity across our network.”

Dave Richardson of Railfuture (Image: Contributed)

Dave Richardson, a spokesman for campaign group Railfuture, said: “We welcome any reform of how our railways are run that would lead to simpler and better value fares, which is part of the Great British Railways initiative.

“Bringing together GWR and the part of Network Rail responsible for its routes would also be welcome if it would deliver a more reliable railway.”

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The DfT described the move as a “significant moment”, adding it would place passengers, rather than shareholders, “at the heart of our railways”.

GWR’s services, which run from Taunton, Bristol, Gloucester and other major stations across the West and South Wales, will come under the control of the government’s new Great British Railways organisation.

GWR has been running trains across the south west of England for 20 years. The line it uses was built between Bristol and London by Isambard Kingdom Brunel and opened in 1841.

Several rail operators are already publicly owned, including Greater Anglia and South Western Railway.

Rail services in Wales were nationalised in 2021 and Scotland took trains into public ownership the following year.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander warned last year that renationalising train services would not necessarily result in lower fares.

The focus will instead be on improving services and infrastructure.