Motorists’ fury at uneven road which sparks 17 compensation claims
- Some of the slabs on the public route in Basildon have dropped by four inches
Shaken motorists have likened negotiating an uneven concrete road to 'driving over steps', with dozens having to pay for repairs on their vehicles.
Some of the slabs on the public route serving an industrial estate and a shopping area have dropped by four inches, leading to bone-jarring journeys.
Tyres have been shredded, wheel rims dented and mechanical parts thrown out of kilter at the site in Basildon, despite drivers slowing to a crawl.
The 'ridiculous' situation has left Essex County Council with 17 compensation claims in the space of just one year - although there are believed to be many other cases that haven't been lodged with the highways authority.
Freight forwarder Kerry Martin, 29, who was driving to work in her Vauxhall car yesterday, said: 'It's put the tracking out. Honestly, it's like driving over steps.
Tyres have been shredded, wheel rims dented and mechanical parts thrown out of kilter at the site (pictured) in Basildon, despite drivers slowing to a crawl
The 'ridiculous' situation has left Essex County Council with 17 compensation claims in the space of just one year - although there are believed to be many other cases that haven't been lodged with the highways authority
Freight forwarder Kerry Martin, 29, who was driving to work in her Vauxhall car yesterday, said: 'It's put the tracking out. Honestly, it's like driving over steps (pictured)'
A Tesla drives over the uneven concrete slabs that have four inch drops in places
Tyres have been shredded, wheel rims dented and mechanical parts thrown out of kilter at the site in Basildon, despite drivers slowing to a crawl
The 'ridiculous' situation has left Essex County Council with 17 compensation claims in the space of just one year
'Even going like a turtle over it, it still damages your car. I said to my mum that if this keeps going on I'm going to send the bill to the council. I feel as if I'm paying my road tax for no reason.'
Van driver David Husak, 18, who was winding his way along the road in his Suzuki hatchback, complained: 'I've had to replace my arm ball joints and wheel bearings and the tyres, many times. It must have cost me £900 over the past year.
'My dad also has a friend who's a truck driver and many times his tyres have blown.'
Danka Sonner, 40, a transport controller, has to navigate the road every day in her Vauxhall Combo van.
'You can see this bit was fixed a couple of years ago but it's getting worse and worse,' she said.
'I have to go really slow. Some people totally stop in the road to get over it. I go maybe 5mph.
'We always get bikers along here and lorries coming to Argos and other companies. It's dangerous.'
Chloe Parker, 26, stopped her car to check her tyres after a series of jolts while driving down the road for the first time to take her daughter to a play centre.
The tattooist said: 'Luckily I had put my pressure up quite high, so it took the impact.
'I didn't expect to be driving over something like that. It's ridiculous. It's like there are two parts of the road that are sinking down.
'There's no warning – just these signs [saying 'Slow' and 'Bumps'] but they don't really describe what is happening in the road.'
Miles Gray Road is on the outskirts of Basildon and leads to an industrial estate used by large freight and delivery firms, as well as shoppers going to the Pips Hill retail park
Essex Highways confirmed there had been 17 compensation claims in the 12 months to October 2022 in response to a Freedom of Information request submitted by Peter Barker, head of HR at local freight firm Alpi UK
A spokesman for Essex Highways said: 'Miles Gray Road was last inspected on September 23 and is listed on a programme for repairs, with a date due to be set'
The concrete slabs have created a four-inch drop in places, leading to 17 compensation claims
Credit controller Mush Jamal, 24, who drives his BMW 3 series along the road every day, added: 'I hate it. It's damaged my car. The bottom has come off and the plastic part around the wheel arches has scraped off.
'What can I do? I started here three months ago and the road is getting worse and worse. It's like no one even cares.'
Miles Gray Road is on the outskirts of Basildon and leads to an industrial estate used by large freight and delivery firms, as well as shoppers going to the Pips Hill retail park.
Essex Highways confirmed there had been 17 compensation claims in the 12 months to October 2022 in response to a Freedom of Information request submitted by Peter Barker, head of HR at local freight firm Alpi UK.
Mr Barker, who said the problem was being compounded by metal support bars left exposed by multiple potholes, said he had lodged a formal complaint 11 times.
'They're putting the remedial measures in place but not actually fixing the problem itself. They are not maintaining the road to any reasonable standard,' he told the BBC.
Charlie Mann, the firm's warehouse manager, added: 'Some of the slabs are lifting, almost like a seesaw effect.
'There's one particular part that's dropped by more than 10cm – that's some depth.'
It is not clear what has caused the problem but the heavy vehicles using the road are understood to be exacerbating the problem.
A spokesman for Essex Highways said: 'Miles Gray Road was last inspected on September 23 and is listed on a programme for repairs, with a date due to be set.
'In order to maximise our resources, we have to prioritise and schedule our work to fix the most urgent issues first. All defects reported to us are assessed by an inspector and prioritised accordingly.'