Edinburgh's worst roads for potholes in 2022 as…

Edinburgh's worst roads for potholes in 2022 as workers called out 7,000 times

Greendykes Road has been named as the worst street in Edinburgh for pothole repairs after transport chiefs fixed almost 80 defects in the first three months of the year.

Engineers were called to mend a total of 79 fractured parts of the busy thoroughfare, which sits in the Portobello and Craigmillar ward, according to new data.

The street beat Long Dalmahoy Road and Queensferry Road to claim top spot in the latest figures exploring the capital’s ‘most fixed’ locations.

Maintenance crews filled in more than 7,000 cavities on Edinburgh’s tarmac between January 1 and March 31.

A Freedom of Information request revealed a breakdown of every street on which a pothole was rectified across the capital during the year’s first quarter.

Last year, Edinburgh Live reported how Long Dalmahoy Road had been compared to “the surface of the moon” by one resident after it was identified as the most problematic road in the city in the 20/21 financial year.

Road workers have already fixed issues with the rural route 76 times in 2022, while Queensferry Road has been patched up on 65 occasions.

City of Edinburgh Council has allocated an additional £1 million to its “revenue maintenance” budget ring fenced for road repairs, however Scottish Conservative councillor Jason Rust called for “proper investment” in the upkeep of public roads.

"The current SNP Labour Administration rejected Conservative calls for innovation for cheaper and better road repairs using new equipment to repair potholed and damaged areas quickly,” he said.

“We urgently need to see proper investment in our roads and pavements and less time given to vanity projects."

Slateford Road, on 59 defects, placed fourth, while Lasswade Road and Milton Road West were tied in fifth with 57 repairs each.

Meanwhile, sections of Gillsland Road were filled in 54 times, Captain’s Road and The Jewel were patched up on 53 occasions respectively, while Cockburn Crescent and Lanark Road West rounded off the top ten on 51 repairs.

National estimates put the local authority repair backlog for Edinburgh at around £77m, according to figures released in a report last month.

A City of Edinburgh Council spokesperson said: “Our roads team work extremely hard to make sure our roads are repaired as quickly as possible, as the sheer numbers of defects repaired over recent years show.

“Of course we appreciate the frustration road defects like potholes can cause, but it’s essential that we direct our resources where needed, so our roads continue to be usable and safe.”

They added: “Every year we invest millions to maintain and improve our network, and this year we’ll be investing an extra £1m on top of our existing budget, approved as part of the city’s 2022/23 budget, in significant roads and pavements improvement projects to create a better experience for all road users.”

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