An on-line pothole petition, launched at the end of March on aaireland.ie, has attracted more than 9,500 signatures from Irish motorists countrywide.
"Damaged roads and potholes are causing huge frustration and damage, so we are not surprised that we received such a strong response," says director of policy Conor Faughnan.
"Local authorities are aware of the problem, but despite the allocation of some extra resources for road repairs, they are still strapped for cash. That, and the effects of the last winter, mean that 2011 is the year of the pothole."
While a strong geographical spread of signatures make up the petition, the highest response rate per capita was in counties Wexford, Cork, Meath and Kildare. In an earlier AA motor insurance poll, Wexford motorists ranked second highest in terms of the number who had sustained vehicle damage following a collision with a pothole since the beginning of 2011.
This week the AA will begin dissemination of all 9,500 signatures, which originate from every county in Ireland, to the appropriate local authorities.
"It's good news and definitely a step in the right direction that an additional €60 million has recently been made available to restore regional and local roads," says Faughnan. "But given the scale of the work needed countrywide, we are likely to find that it is a long way short of what is needed to do the job right and bring our roads back up to scratch."
