Decision made over 'dangerous' potholes creating a hazard for drivers on main road linking Blackpool to M55

Potholes on a main road into Blackpool and St Annes are set to be repaired – with some drivers having raised fears the road is so badly damaged it could cause danger unless action is taken.

Lancashire County Council said it has inspected the stretch of School Road just west of the Cropper Road roundabout and is now set to start work shortly to fix the damage. That part of the road is within its area of highway responsibility before it crosses the border into Blackpool just a short distance further.

St Annes resident Gerry Lynch is among those who have raised concerns about the condition along the route which is regularly used by drivers to reach the M55.

He said: “Every time I drive over the stretch where the potholes are, I am worried they will damage my car. And I would definitely not want to use the road if I was on a two-wheeled vehicle such as a push bike or motorbike as I think it would be dangerous.

“I contacted councillors and my MP before Christmas about it because we deserve a road we can drive on and I don’t think it gives a very good impression to visitors who are using that route into St Annes or Blackpool.”

A spokesman for Lancashire County Council said: “Mid-winter is always the worst time of the year for potholes, as they’re caused by wet and cold weather, and the particularly wet end to 2023, followed by the recent cold snap, means that our roads have suffered a lot of damage in recent weeks.

“We have brought in extra contractors to help our highways teams, and they’re working hard to repair the damage caused by the weather as quickly as possible. Our highways inspectors visited School Lane toward the end of January and identified a number of defects, with work to repair them scheduled to take place within the next week.

“We are considering School Lane for further maintenance alongside other priorities as part of our highways programme for the coming year, to prevent the need for repeated repairs to potholes. We’d ask people to report any highways issues to us using the Love Clean Streets app, via our website or by calling our customer service centre, so that we can carry out inspections and any repairs needed.”