An ‘incompetent’ council has been slammed after they painted wobbly double yellow lines over potholes instead of fixing them.
Astonished locals in Lymington, Hampshire, assumed Avenue Road was having its 10-plus potholes filled when it was closed.
But when access returned to the road it was even more of a ‘mess’, with ‘shoddy’ double yellows running through the damaged areas.
Residents and councillors have been left furious at the council ignoring requests to resurface the section of the quaint port town, branding the situation ‘a scandalous waste of taxpayers money’ and an ‘absolute madness’.
The Town Mayor of the Lymington and Pennington Council, Councillor Jack Davies, said: ‘It just reinforces the idea that the council is [sic] incompetent.’
Cllr Davies emailed Hampshire County Council’s Highways department back in March to inform them of his concerns over painting the road.
He said the road surface is ‘atrocious’ at the location – with just stony gravel underneath the surface dressing – and advised them not to paint over the road until it has been fixed.
The Town Mayor added: ‘I warned Hampshire County Council that they needed to repair the potholes before they painted double yellow lines.
‘That they knew this and still went ahead and painted over the potholes is ridiculous.’
Cllr Davies said ‘the whole road is a mess’ and it desperately needed ‘a whole resurfacing’.
But his requests to repair the road before the yellow lines were painted were ignored.
He continued: ‘People generally aren’t surprised because they already expect the council to be stupid.
‘I honestly don’t know what process they follow that they thought that was okay.’
Avenue Road, the location of the potholes, is also the home of Lymington and Pennington Town Council and the New Forest National Park Authority.
Paul Whatley, whose son lives in the town, said: ‘Signs appeared saying the road was going to be closed and we assumed the potholes were about to be repaired.
‘But they painted double yellow lines through them instead. It’s absolute madness. Someone hasn’t got their head screwed on properly.
‘There must be at least half a dozen potholes in Avenue Road. One is about two or three feet long and an inch deep.’
He expressed his outrage on Facebook and spoke of how the council ‘painted through the pot holes’ instead of fixing them.
Benjamin Elks, grassroots development manager at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: ‘Residents are sick of seeing councils paper over the cracks instead of actually tackling long-term problems faced in their area.
‘Taxpayers have seen council tax levels explode, yet at the same time services have deteriorated.
‘Town hall bosses should cut down on waste, boost productivity, and deliver the council that their residents expect.’
Residents are now waiting to discover if the holes will be left as they are or repaired and the lines repainted – at an additional cost to taxpayers.
A county council spokesperson said: ‘We are currently investigating what has happened at this location.’