The worst potholes in Kettering, Corby, Wellingborough and Rushden, according to our readers

Potholes are the topic which people seem to go really potty over.

So we asked our readers to tell us where the worst potholes in Kettering, Corby, Wellingborough and Rushden are, resulting in hundreds of comments on our Facebook page.

Among the numerous comments about the state of the roads in north Northants, you gave us more than 50 locations of potholes which are driving you mad.

One commenter described the local roads as ‘a mess,’ while another said: “Where to start? There are so many! It’s more like a game of dodge the pothole!”

One person said Steel Road in Corby is full of potholes, adding: “It's more like the surface of the moon.”

Another post on our Facebook post said: “I would have a list as long as my arm if I mentioned every pothole here in Wellingborough.

"I have just had to have my nearside front wheel structurally repaired and a new tyre after running into a pothole in Park Road.

"However, there is not a road that is free from them.

"One cannot miss them all without driving erratically or very slowly, especially at night.”

And another person said it would be ‘way quicker’ to list the roads without potholes.

So with potholes proving to be such a problem for drivers in the area, we asked North Northants Council (NNC) about the issue.

Cllr Graham Lawman, NNC’s executive member for highways, travel and assets, said: “We have experienced two distinct cold spells so far this winter which can create problems with highways across the country – as it is the freeze-thaw action of water which can lead to surface damage.

“Planned and reactive repairs are identified through a comprehensive inspection programme and are prioritised according to severity and this includes ‘pothole’ repairs, however surface repairs are not as effective in extreme cold weather, so it is necessary to wait for temperatures to become more favourable.

"In addition we also respond to requests for service received through Street Doctor.

“We entered into a new seven-year highways contract with Kier in September last year and have already embarked on an additional £1.5 million investment programme across our parishes to address highways issues.

"This is on top of the existing road reconstruction and resurfacing programmes that are delivered by Kier.

“More than 1,400 individual ‘potholes’ have received a ‘permanent’ repair since the start of the contract.

"On top of this, more potholes have received emergency repairs and other defects have been repaired as part of widespread patching works.

“Any highways problems should be reported through the online Street Doctor service as this allows residents to track the status of the repair.

“For 2023/24 – subject to approval by council later this month - we will be spending in excess of £8 million on planned and reactive highway maintenance operations.”

For more information on potholes, how to report them and details on how potholes are graded for repair ranging from emergency (response within two hours) to priority four (response within 26 weeks), click here.

If there is a pothole in Kettering, Corby, Wellingborough or Rushden which is driving you mad but hasn’t made the list below, let us know by emailing details of it and a picture (if possible and safe to do so) to [email protected].