Take a holiday from potholes and go abroad

Of the five aspects of driving the RAC asked drivers to compare between the UK and Europe, the UK scored highest on just one – the ease of understanding road signs, with a third (30%) saying they find signage more straightforward at home.

However, a much greater proportion (55%) believe there is little difference and one-in-10 (10%) say they find European road signs easier to read.

In contrast, 37% of drivers thought painted road markings – such as junctions and give way lines – were easier to see on foreign roads while 32% saw little difference, compared to a fifth (21%) of drivers who think painted markings are more visible in the UK.

Meanwhile, a third (34%) feel roadside litter is much less of an issue abroad than it is this side of the Channel, with just 11% saying they think UK roads are cleaner than those in Europe.

RAC Europe spokesman Rod Dennis said, “There’s much talk about just how dire the state of the UK’s local roads are, but to hear drivers think they are significantly worse than elsewhere in Europe is shocking.

“This begs the question: if other countries can manage to have decent quality highways to drive on, why can’t we? It’s even more concerning from a safety perspective to learn just how many drivers think the UK’s motorways are plagued with potholes compared to the smooth surfaces of their European counterparts, as it’s these high-speed routes that carry most traffic.

“Aside from having fewer potholes, European roads also come up trumps for their lack of litter and better visibility of road markings. So, it’s not just better weather drivers are benefitting from when they’re abroad – the condition of the roads makes them safer to drive on too.”

Drivers’ despair with the woeful state of Britain’s local roads – those which make up 98% of all roads – has reached the highest level ever, scathing new figures from the RAC show.

For the first time ever, a majority of drivers – nearly six-in-10 (56%) – surveyed for the RAC Report on Motoring say the condition and maintenance of roads for which councils are responsible was one of their top motoring concerns, up seven percentage points compared to 2023 (49%).

Frustration with local roads is now an incredible 21 percentage points ahead of drivers’ second biggest concern, the cost of insuring a vehicle, and 24 ahead of the third biggest issue which is the cost of fuel.

A record, and growing, proportion of drivers are also reporting that local roads they use are in a worse state than the 12 months before. This year, almost three-quarters (73%) of drivers say the condition of the local roads they use regularly is poorer than a year ago, compared to 67% last year and just 49% who said the same thing in 2019.

Just 6% of drivers believe local road surfaces have improved this year compared to last, a statistic that underlines the desperate state many councils now find themselves in when it comes to looking after some of their most vital assets.

The appalling state of many local roads also has clear consequences for cars. More than a quarter of drivers (27%) say their vehicle has suffered damage as a result of potholes in the last 12 months, a figure which rises to 32% among those who live in rural areas.

Punctures (47%) are the most common problem reported, followed by wheel damage (43%) and broken suspension springs (29%). The latter two problems can be particularly expensive, with RAC data showing that the average cost of repairing a family car costing anything up to £460.