A man says that he has had to have his car repaired twice due to damage caused by a pothole ridden street in South Belfast.
Newforge Lane resident Steve Hamiliton has expressed concern over the state of the road saying that cars are regularly being damaged due to the large number of potholes on the street.
He said that some of the potholes can been eight inches deep in places and that the road has become a danger to those using it, along with pedestrians as cars are swerving across the road to avoid the potholes.
Read more: Northern Ireland streetlights could be turned off and roads ungritted, Stormont department warns
In the course of six months, he says that he has had to spend £300 replacing the shock absorbers on his car which became damaged from driving over the potholes.
Speaking to Belfast Live, Steve said: "For years there have been problems along the length of Newforge Lane with potholes and it has started to cause issues for eveyone using the road.
"Cars are being damaged just driving the road and I have had to have my shock absorbers replaced twice in the space of six months while I have seen others vehicles with damaged tyres after trying to make their way down Newforge Lane.
"It has even started to become a problem for pedestrians, as cars are zig-zagging and swerving across the road to avoid the potholes and I am worried how a cyclist or motorcycle driver would cope if they were to hit one of the potholes when driving at night.
"I know that residents have complained to DfI about the issue but have heard nothing back and we feel that something needs to be done urgently to sort out the potholes, because this can't continue."
DfI has said that the department currently only maintains the first 162 metres of Newforge Lane and another 180 metre section, with the remainder of the road being privately owned.
A Department for Infrastructure spokesperson said: "The Department currently only inspects and maintains the first 162metres of Newforge Lane as well as a 180metre section from house number 28 to number 47. The remaining sections of road are privately owned.
"The adopted areas are inspected every three months and any actionable defects are picked up and issued to the contractor for repair in accordance with the Departments current policy."
Have you spotted any potholes or pitted roads we should know about? Let us know in the comments below!
READ NEXT:
