Cambridgeshire pothole crisis 'getting worse' for mechanic
The AA received nearly 614,000 pothole-related callouts last year
A mechanic in Cambridgeshire has said he's seeing more vehicles damaged by potholes on the county's roads.
In the last five years, Cambridgeshire County Council has repaired an average of 55,400 potholes a year.
But despite the authority allocating more than £73 million to maintaining local roads in 2025-26, the condition of some of them is still affecting motorists.
"The potholes are getting worse," Grant Griffin, manager at Queen Adelaide Garage near Ely, said.
"We're seeing more and more damage from cars, damaged wheels, tyres, broken suspension parts due to potholes; it seems nothing's getting done about it."
Last October, Councillor Alex Beckett - chair of the county council's highways and transport committee - said the authority was "spending record amounts" on improving roads.
Mr Beckett added this investment "will make a meaningful difference to people's lives across Cambridgeshire."
Pothole warranty is 'a game changer'
The Pothole Partnership campaign group - made up of bodies including the AA that calls for better, permanent road repairs - has called for highways contractors to offer a five-year warranty on every non-emergency pothole they fill.
To mark National Pothole Day, figures from the AA show it received 613,638 pothole-related callouts last year, a daily average of 1,681.
Edmund King, president of the AA, said the warranty would be "a game-changer.
"It shifts the focus from short-term patches to long-lasting repairs and ensures accountability from those carrying out the work.
"Drivers, cyclists and motorcyclists deserve roads that stay fixed - not ones that crumble again within weeks."
Polo damage 'probably the worst' case
The AA found the total cost for all UK drivers hitting potholes in 2025 could have been £645m, an increase of £66m from 2024.
Common vehicle problems caused by potholes include damaged shock absorbers, broken suspension springs and distorted wheels.
Grant - who's been at Queen Adelaide Garage for around seven years - told us one of the most notable incidents he's had to deal with was with a Volkswagen Polo.
"Two of her wheels were damaged by a pothole and couldn't get the wheels for three weeks; she ended up hiring a car because she couldn't get backwards and forwards to work," he said.
"That was probably the worst that I've known a car to be off the road due to it (potholes)."
Currently, Cambridgeshire County Council is making carriageway repairs to certain routes that have developed potholes and large cracks, including the Forty Foot Bank which connects Chatteris to Ramsey.
Roads are in 'a terrible state'
In the Government's new traffic light system - which judges how well local highways authorities are maintaining roads and how much money is spent on repairs - Cambridgeshire scored amber.
For the 2025-26 financial year, local road maintenance funding for England provided by the Government was nearly £1.6 billion, a £500m uplift compared with the previous 12 months.
Grant has been a victim of a pothole himself when driving on the A10 towards King's Lynn, which severely damaged his car.
But he's unsure what can be done to fix Cambridgeshire's roads.
"Some of them around here, the edge of the road drops off and can cause serious damage to people's cars," he added.
"It's good for business, but on a personal front, it's not good telling someone they've damaged a tyre or wheel due to a pothole.
"How bad can the roads get? I honestly don't know, but they're in a terrible state."