THE recent bad weather has left a hole lot of work for Hertfordshire Highways. Since the start of the year, more than 5,000 potholes have been identified by highways officers or reports from the public, with over 3,000 needing immediate, emergency repairs

THE recent bad weather has left a hole lot of work for Hertfordshire Highways.

Since the start of the year, more than 5,000 potholes have been identified by highways officers or reports from the public, with over 3,000 needing immediate, emergency repairs to keep the county's roads safe.

"The coldest weather conditions for nearly 30 years have taken a major toll on Hertfordshire's roads, pavements and cycleways. We're identifying around 300 potholes a day," said Stuart Pile, county council executive member for highways and transport.

"Currently, we have 36 repair gangs, a number of surfacing contractors and four jet patching machines engaged in repairing Hertfordshire's roads."

The unusually prolonged cold conditions so far this year mean many more roads across the county have been damaged than in a normal winter.

Permanent repairs on main roads have begun but will take several months to complete.

After bad weather a year ago, over 15,000 potholes were reported and repaired in a six-week period at a cost of �1.1m.

It is still too early to put a figure on the potential cost implications of damage caused by the bad weather this winter, said a county council spokesman.