By NICO SCAVELLA

Tribune Staff Reporter

nscavella@tribunemedia.net

MINISTER of Works Philip “Brave” Davis said he was unaware of complaints about numerous potholes in the area of Montagu and Village Road but urged motorists to bring their issues to his ministry. He was asked to comment after a motorist complained about numerous potholes in the area that have made “driving a mess” during her daily commutes to and from home.

Last month, Montagu MP Richard Lightbourn told The Tribune that he has been made aware of the poor road conditions and has on a number of occasions contacted Ministry of Works officials concerning the issue.

When questioned on the matter yesterday, Mr Davis, who is also deputy prime minister, said: “I’m not aware of (the complaints) but we have a team that goes out, and we have the island sectionalised to look after potholes.”

“Once it’s been brought to our attention, we fix it. I seldom go in certain areas, but if there are potholes, please complain to us and we’ll attend to getting it fixed.”

Yesterday, the motorist, who wished to remain anonymous, told The Tribune that the holes on East Bay Street near Montagu and on Village Road have her “swerving in and out” of traffic in an attempt to avoid hitting the nuisances.

She added that despite her attempts to avoid them, her car tyre was recently blown out as a result of striking one of the holes.

The resident said Ministry of Works employees have been “constantly digging up” Village Road for several weeks, further complicating the matter. She said the problem has got so bad that every time she drives on Village Road she finds new holes that weren’t there before.

“The road, East Bay Street near Montagu and Village Road, is littered with pot holes some resembling craters,” the resident said. “It’s a danger to motorists and shows that our tax dollars are not properly spent. If they can’t even allocate money to fix holes properly, it makes me wonder what will happen when value added tax comes on stream.”

Last month, Mr Lightbourn said he has been trying to get the road problems in his constituency fixed.

“I have made a number of representations on behalf of the residents in that area concerning the potholes, in particular two on Village Road, that are really dangerous to persons driving in that area,” Mr Lightbourn said.

“Usually there is a fast response to resolve these types of issues. I was in contact with the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Works (over) the last couple of weeks trying to correct the matter,” Mr Lightbourn added.

Former Minister of Works Neko Grant previously suggested that poor road conditions like the ones in the Montagu area are a result of “a lack of due diligence”.

He said that persons being contracted to carry out road repairs are not being properly vetted to ensure that they are capable of getting the job done correctly.