Alerting Somerset County Council to potholes or other problems on local roads is now easier and quicker – and now you can track its progress after you’ve reported it.
Gone is the need to make phone calls or send emails – thanks to a new upgraded online system with an improved interactive map, members of the public can report a problem 24/7 and the council’s Highways team will get on the case.
From potholes, blocked drains and broken manhole covers, to overgrown vegetation, damaged pavements or cycle paths, faulty traffic lights or missing markings – they can all be reported from a smartphone, tablet or computer.
The full range and how to report is available at www.somerset.gov.uk/roads-and-transport/report-a-problem-on-the-road/.
“The new improved Report It system has been delivered by our dedicated Digital Team as part of ongoing improvements to the Digital Customer programme,” says Councillor Faye Purbrick, Somerset County Council’s Cabinet Member for Transformation.
“It is an exciting time to be working in the Council’s Digital Team and there are great opportunities available for people who want to innovate and deliver great customer solutions to join us.”
“Our goal is to use digital innovation to transform the way that residents engage with the Council, taking away the need for emails and phone calls to our busy contact centre, unless that is their preferred way of getting in touch.”
The new development means that if you’re reporting a fault you can now track its progress.
Highbridge councillor John Woodman, Somerset County Council’s Cabinet Member for Highways added: “This is now an excellent tool to alert our teams quickly and efficiently so they can carry out repairs across the network.”
“Please do take a look and make use of the system, and tell us what you think, we want to hear your feedback.”
The system works through seven simple stages:
- You take a picture of the fault – please only do so if it’s safe and legal.
- You fill in the form and submit your picture at the link above – if it’s a pothole you’ll be asked to roughly estimate its size, e.g. golf ball, tennis ball, or football. You will receive an email thanking you for reporting the fault and carrying a link for you to track its progress.
- It will then ping up a notification on an engineer’s phone.
- They will visit and assess – we aim to do this in three working days and depending on size and where it is will try to repair it within 28 days, or sooner if it’s an emergency. All defects are risk assessed and either allocated a repair within 28 days, added to a routine works programme or monitored.
- While on site the engineer sends a works order electronically to our contractor to schedule the job in our routine repairs programme.
- The contractor comes out and repairs the fault.
- You’ll get an email confirming this has happened.
The council says it sets high standards with local roads and the number of potholes in Somerset has fallen from 27,479 in 2010 to 19,282 in 2020. From 1 April to 19 November 2021, 11,721 potholes have been repaired.
Somerset County Council looks after 4,172 miles of road and in 2020/21 invested £23.1m to keep the county moving. Highways teams filled 19,282 potholes last year and carried out 556 highway maintenance schemes ranging from drainage works to carriageway and footway resurfacing.
