Hole lot of trouble

A QUARTER of a millionpounds has been switchedfrom East Ren coffers totop up the council'soverstretched wintermaintenance operation.

The additional cash will take the

local authority's expected seasonal

spend for gritting and mopping-up

activities to more than 1 million.

Previously 750,000 was deemed

sufficient to cover an average

winter — but not one which

recorded unprecedented low

temperatures locally.

As the ERC cabinet passed the

money transfer, council leader Jim

Fletcher paid tribute to the

"excellent job in the bad weather"

done by the roads' department

"and many people who worked

through their holidays".

He added that he was also

amazed his bin was collected

regularly during the last snowy

month, despite living "at the top of

a hill".

Since the snow began thawing

massive potholes have been

appearing almost daily in southside

streets, and East Renfrewshire's

not alone in becoming pockmarked.

Glasgow's roads are breaking up

too, but claims that the city council

will spend 4 million on filling

highway holes are wide of the

mark, according to a roads'

department spokesman.

He explained that the figure

includes original costs plus

anything incurred over winter:

"The maintenance budget, which

covers snow clearing and gritting,

was 1.5m but we believe another

2.5m will have to be added to

cover this winter's severe conditions.

"Budgets have not yet been

drawn up for next year so it is too

early to say just how much it will

cost to repair the potholes caused

by the cold weather".

Prestige Tyres in Busby has

already seen the start of what's

expected to be a busy period.

Spokeswoman Gillian McLean

said: "The roads are bad and its

only going to get worse".

She told The Extra: "We've had

quite a few people coming to us

with bulges in the walls of their

tyres.

"That needs a new tyre, because

the bulge is a weak spot that could

burst. They're usually caused by

potholes.

"We've had a top-of-the-range

BMW in recently with a cracked

wheel after going over potholes

"Even I went over one last week

and the noise is unbelievable on

some of the holes in the roads".

As advertised in last week's

Extra, Prestige offers a free tyre

check for anyone with concerns.

Some drivers, who've had tyres

replaced, have attempted to recoup

the cost of their new treads from

councils' accounts.

Between January 1 and January

19 this year, ERC had received (and

onpasssed to its insurer) 11 claims

from motorists seeking damages

because of potholes. This is more

than five times the total a year ago,

which, for the same period, totalled

just two.

Potholes can be reported online

at both council websites.

On Glasgow, follow the roads

and lighting faults (RALF) link on

the getting around page under

residents. East Ren's site takes

reports of potholes via its customer

connect page.

REPORTERS Elaine Liddle, Louise Brown and

David Oliver say these are the worst potholes

they've encountered across the southside.

Elm Street, Busby: Fast becoming a nightmare,

a rapidly-growing crater stands on the corner of

the Birch Avenue junction.

Thornliebank Road, just after Burnfield Road.

Heading towards Glasgow drivers hit a multitude

of road layers, at varying levels of decay.

Eaglesham Road, corner of Cartsbridge Road:

horrific-looking edge where the second layer of

road can be seen clearly, as a large section has

collapsed in on itself.

Nitshill Road, Darnley: A small drain cover in

the middle of the off-side lane heading west has a

deep hole acting as a moat around it and causing

double trouble for tyres.

Albert Drive: The west Pollokshields end is

littered with huge holes, but some awful ones, at

the brow of the hill near Dalziel Drive, have

recently been filled in.

Gower Street, Pollokshields: Entrance to Extra

HQ and Bellahouston Academy is one of the worst

roads in the area, the cobbled railway bridge feels

smoother than the tarmac.

Add your opinion through the comment section on this page.