OL! What a mess

A Pothole in Roscoe Street, Oldham

Pothole claim is a postcode lottery
A CLAIM that Oldham’s roads are the worst in the country is based on wrong figures.

The AA’s national streetwatch survey, which was completed by more than 1,900 people, has declared that the borough has exceptionally bad potholes, uneven pavements, dog fouling, litter and roadworks, to name a few.

But the survey, which was carried out between October 23 and November 12 last year, monitored the whole of the OL postcode, which also covers Rochdale, Littleborough and Heywood.

Councillor John McCann, Cabinet member for regeneration and environment, has laughed off the survey for being “unfortunate”.

He said: “For the AA to name Oldham as the worst is very unfortunate when another authority is involved — Rochdale has the same problems that we have.

“If we could put all the roads right in Oldham it would cost £60 million which is just impossible, but we have invested £10 million on our roads over a three-year period.”

He said that during the severe winter weather there was a six-week period when repairs could not be done as tarmac can’t be laid in sub-zero temperatures.

AA president Edmund King said: “AA Streetwatch is perhaps an example of the big society in action.

“We will share the results with the local highway authority to support our campaign for more investment in local streets and paths — neglect of these areas has a significant impact on how people feel about where they live.”

Last week the Chronicle reported that Oldham’s roads were the 173rd worst in the country, according to a league table compiled by CTC, a national cycling organisation.

The council was quick to hit back with its repair rates — more than 5,000 pot-holes repaired at a cost of £130,000 since 2007. Revised figures show the authority now ranks 19th in the CTC league table and is top of the 10 Greater Manchester authorities.