Potholes at Entrance to Car Park on the Esplanade Reported

Constituents have complained to me about the very uneven surface at the entrance to the car park located midway along The Esplanade. As can be seen in the picture, a number of potholes have developed and are getting worse. 

This is a well used free car park which offers visitors and residents alike a good place to park with easy access to the beach and the grassy margin between the dunes and The Esplanade.

I have asked the Environment Department to arrange for the potholes to be filled in and a more even surface restored.

Pothole Action on Douglas Terrace

Last week, I reported a series of eight of the most serious potholes on Douglas Terrace. These were identified on the stretch of Douglas Terrace between its junctions with Dundee Road and Home Street. 

While further along the waterfront towards the harbour the carriageway has been resurfaced, this section of the road is still on the waiting list for an upgrade.

During the winter weather sections of the road surface thet has been been previously dug up and infilled has been eroded and become a hazard.

I am pleased to report that the road has been inspected by staff from the Roads' Maintenance Partnership and they have reported that the potholes should be fixed quite soon.

Potholes Identified on Tom Johnston Avenue to be Fixed

Last week I was alerted to a number of road defects on Tom Johnston Road in Broughty Ferry close to the Sainsbury's supermarket.

After a 'site' visit, I asked the Roads Maintenance Partnership (RMP) to investigate four serious imperfections in the road surface of Tom Johnston Road between the mini roundabout at the junction with Baldovie Road and the mini roundabout at the junction with the Sainsbury's store car park and the filling station.

The pothole in the picture is deep although hardly the size of a dinner plate yet.

The potholes around some of the drain inspection/access covers were also worthy of attention and repair.

I have received the following positive reply from the RMP:
"I refer to your email and would advise that the Roads Maintenance Partnership inspector for the area has raised an order for the repair of the imperfections in the road surface with a timescale for repair of 28 days or sooner."

Potholes at Junction of King Street and Westfield Road Reported to Roads Maintenance Partnership

Earlier today I reported a series of sizeable potholes in the road close to the junction of King  Street and Westfield Road in The Ferry.

As you can see, some of these fissures run along the joints from previous repairs.

I have asked the Roads' Maintenance Partnership to fix these as soon as possible.

Douglas Terrace Potholes and Pavements Need Attention

Click on image to enlarge

On Friday, work to upgrade the coastal pathway between Grassy Beach and Douglas Terrace should be completed.

When Kilmac, the contractors, have removed their portacabins and cleaned up the site, I think it will be time for the Council to take action to fill in the potholes in the road surface and attend to some of the broken surfaces on the pavements.

I have written to the Transportation Department and Convener of City Development to raise this with them.

I have already raised the need for the Environment Department to restore the triangle of open space at the end of Douglas Terrace. The flower bed needs to be weeded and replanted, the grass cut and the ruts filled in.

Potholes in Aberdour Place Reported

Potholes at the junction of Aberdour Place
and Abercromby Street

Constituents in Aberdour Place have complained to me about the state of their road.

My picture, left, shows some of the potholes at the junction of Aberdour Place with Abercromby Street. Local residents have observed how the road surface has deteriorated during the winter weather.

Walking round Aberdour Place, it is clear that there are several more sections as pockmarked and deserving of attention as the one I have photographed.

I have reported this this specific roadway to the Roads' Maintenance Partnership. I have also requested they inspect the remainder of Aberdour Place, particularly the junctions with its various cul-de-sacs.

Long Lane Potholes Reported But Would Resurfacing be More Cost Effective?

Click on image to enlarge

Following a complaint from a resident, I have reported this pothole to the Roads' Maintenance Partnership.  

It's located in the western end of Long Lane between Westfield Road and Church Street. 

The depth and sharp edge would make this an uncomfortable pothole to encounter while passing parked cars on the southern side of the street.

While this pothole is certainly worth reporting and patching, the picture also indicates that at several adjacent points, the edge of this road is breaking up and has either been recently patched or will also require repair shortly as small fissures become enlarged. In the long term, a complete resurfacing of Long Lane would probably be more cost effective.

Lawrence Street Potholes Need Fixed

Earlier this week I reported a group of deep potholes on the section of Lawrence Street that runs beside the Marks and Spencer car park. 

They look as though they have been repaired before but what with attrition from recent frost and rain, the holes are now quite deep and the edges soft and crumbling. I have asked the Roads Maintenance Partnership to fill them in.

Rapid Rethink Required Over Planned Pavement Upgrading in Broughty Ferry

Click on map to enlarge

When I read a traffic notice issued by the Council on Thursday morning proposing partially closing Gray Street in Broughty Ferry "for the purpose of facilitating kerbing and footway works" I was both surprised and hopeful. I was hopeful that there would be some repairs or improvement to the pavements. I have represented many constituents and traders who have complained about the unevenness of the pavements so it seemed good to know that work might begin in the early new year. My relief rapidly turned to disappointment when I was advised that the upgrading work was going to be a second rate job. It seems that instead of matching the materials used in 2005 to upgrade the pavements in Brook Street between Fort Street and Gray Street, cheaper materials would be used which wouldn't match the texture or colour of the first phase of the upgrading work round the corner.

This all seems at odds with Gray Street being clearly designated in the new Draft Dundee Local Development Plan as a part of the District Shopping Centre with a policy commitment to 'improve their (the District Shopping Areas) attractiveness for businesses and residents'. 

I notice in the City Centre, that improvements to pavements and street furniture have gradually spread to neighbouring streets. For example, Union Street has recently being brought up to the city centre standard. So in the Ferry we want a similar commitment not second rate and patchy pavements.

I was surprised because I had not been properly briefed about this forthcoming work at a point when this was a proposal and disappointed to have been kept out of the loop. Why was this not brought up at the last meeting of the The Ferry Local Community Planning Partnership in November when all Council Services are represented round the table with all Four Ferry Councillors and members of the Community Council and other voluntary projects and groups?

I have written to my fellow Broughty Ferry Councillor and Leader of the Council Ken Guild and the Director of City Development to ask that an immediate pause is put on this. I hope he will tell me that this all a bad dream and the Council's Jacob Marley has come to his senses and determines he won't be cutting any more corners on our new pavements for The Ferry.

Dropped Cast Iron Drain Covers on Dundee Road Need Fixing

On the drive from Broughty Ferry to Dundee along the Dundee Road, I have noticed a number of clunks as my car drives over significant depressions in the road surface.  My bumpy ride in this instance, is caused by three dropped drain covers which are roughly in a line close to the junction of Dundee Road and Ralston Road on the southern carriageway.

Rather like pot holes, if dropped street ironwork is not sorted out, our car journeys can make for an uncomfortable ride and at worst they can cause damage to tyres and wheels.

I first reported these dropped drain covers two months ago. My picture shows a significant depression in the road but more ominously,  I noticed stress fractures in the surrounding tarmac which will only get worse when snow and ice get into them over the winter.

I think it's more than time this was sorted out by the Roads Partnership.

Crazy Paving in Brook Street is Accident Waiting to Happen

The poor state of the pavements in central Broughty Ferry is often a source of complaint to me by constituents and local businesses.

On the basis of these accumulated complaints and my observations, I think the worst sections of pavement are more likely to be concrete rather than tarmac. Many sections of these pavements are cracked and the top surface is flaking off leaving an uneven profile. In both these instances, the fractures and the dips in the surface make these sections of pavement prone to further damage from water ingress and frost action.

My photograph features a section of pavement outside Hosie's Electrical Store at 322-4 Brook Street. This pavement is clearly uneven, damaged and unsatisfactory. Unfortunately this is not dissimilar to many other sections of concrete pavement in the centre of The Ferry.

While pavement surfaces like this are undoubtedly unsightly, it is also potentially dangerous, especially for those already prone to falls. Tripping over on such a surface can easily lead to fractures which are costly to the individual casualty and the NHS.

I have written to the Director of Transportation requesting a credible response. In my view, in the long term it is not very effective for the Council to merely do small scale and superficial patch and mend. While this kind of repair may remove an immediate danger by filling in the worst of the potholes, the Council needs a comprehensive resurfacing programme in central Broughty Ferry. The current occasional patch and mend is in the long term a waste of our council tax payers' money.

Paving the Way for Falls Prevention in Broughty Ferry

Click on image to enlarge

Earlier this week, a sprightly constituent over retirement age contacted me about her unfortunate fall. She had tripped on an uneven stretch of pavement on the western side of Claypotts Road just north of the junction with Brook Street and just south of the railway bridge. As a result, she had broken her nose, and had sustained heavy bruising around her eyes and the rest of her face. Frankly she looked as though she had been mugged or had lost a boxing match. Where she tripped the concrete pathway has sections where the surface is crumbling away and this has made the pavement uneven and over time deeper holes have been developing.

I have reported this to the Roads Maintenance Partnership. 

In the last fortnight, I have reported numerous stretches of roads and pavements in The Ferry which are rutted and/or have potholes. While this usually leads to some filling in of those that staff judge to be the worst, some of the patching does not last very long. I think the Council are losing the battle with stretches of roads and pavements falling into disrepair faster than they can be given a temporary fix.

Uneven pavements and potholes are not only a source of potential danger for members of the public but they are also a costly issue for the NHS.

A report on falls and health, published by the Scottish Government in May 2012 confirms this point:

"With an ageing population, falls and the consequences of falls are a major and growing concern for older people."

"Falls and fractures, in people aged 65 and over, account for over 18,000 unscheduled admissions and 390,500 bed days each year in Scotland."

"In addition, in the over 65 population, falls cases are the largest single presentation to the Scottish Ambulance Service (over 35,000 presentation each year)."

Despite these statistics, falls are not an inevitable consequence of old age. I think the Council needs to take its share of responsibility for the cost to the NHS of falls and a serious reduction in the quality of life of those older persons that sustain more serious injuries such as bone fractures.

Quotations above extracted from:

Up and About or Falling Short? - A Report of the Findings of a Mapping of Services for Falls Prevention in Older People Published by the the Scottish Government, 23 May 2012

Balgillo Road East Potholes - Council Action Required

Residents in Balgillo have complained to me about the poholes on Balgillo Road East. 

Balgillo Road East is the busy road that runs between Balgillo Road and the main A92 Arbroath Road. It runs down the western side of the Sandy Park.

From my observations the potholes are worst on the stretch of the road from its junction with Balgillo Road going north as far as the junction with Rossie Avenue. 

Potholes are more than a nuisance to drivers who experience a bumpy ride and worry about their suspension; they can be a real danger especially to cyclists and other road users with two wheels.

At this specific location, many cyclists are crossing the road while using the Dundee Green Circular route for part of their journey.

I have written to the Transportation Department to request an inspection of this stretch of road and early action to fill in these potholes. 

Potholes in Path at Forthill Flats

At a recent meeting of the Forthill Tenants' Association, I received a complaint about the very poor state of the path to the front door of the block of flats at 14 Forthill Road in the Ferry. The path surface has become distorted with significant variations in level. Most significant, and potentially dangerous, is a pothole just outside the front door. I have reported this to the Housing Department with a request that they rectify this as a matter of urgency.