'Pothole hell' continues in Buckinghamshire as road maintenance reports treble

A total of 9,106 pothole reports were made to Buckinghamshire Council in January and February, compared to 2,919 during the same months in 2025.

There were 4,425 pothole reports made to the authority in January and 4,681 in February, compared to 1,201 and 1,718 in January and February 2025, a freedom of information request by Protyre Autocare revealed.

It comes after residents across the county have bemoaned the state of the roads, with some branding it a “pothole hell.” In March it was revealed that it could cost around £210 million to bring the county’s roads up to the best possible condition.

The figure, which Buckinghamshire Council says is broadly accurate, reflect the estimated cost of completing all viable improvement schemes across its network of more than 2,000 miles of road.

Some residents, frustrated with the condition of the county’s roads, have taken to social media to mock the council. Julia Roberts, from Amersham, has created a series of videos highlighting the issues faced by motorists, including clips of her pretending to fish in a deep pothole and filming a Baywatch-style spoof.

In her latest video posted to Instagram, she explains to viewers that she cannot afford an overseas holiday this year because she has spent too much money repairing pothole damage to her tyres.

In the clip, she is seen wearing a bikini and holding a beer while standing on a country lane. She jokes that she is “loving our local authority pop-up swim pit though,” as she dips her feet into a water-filled crater.

In response Thomas Broom Buckinghamshire Council’s cabinet member for transport addressed the figures. He said: “The recent period of prolonged wet and freezing weather has significantly accelerated the emergence and escalation of highways defects across the country.

“That is why we have increased the number of teams out on the network making repairs by more than double, allowing us to make thousands more repairs and deploying specialist teams using a range of methods to allow for best repairs by location.”

He said the authority was investing “heavily” in delivering long lasting improvements and that the council recently passed a budget that included a £120 million road programme.

Councillor Broom added: “We know there is much work to do, but we are determined, through careful investment and continued best practice, to improve our roads. The recent assessment of local highway maintenance made by the Department for Transport has given top marks to both the level of investment we are making and for best practice in deploying those resources.”