Playmobil digger in a pothole
Playmobil digger in a pothole

Fill that hole

Potholes are a major danger to cyclists throughout the UK. Cycling UK helps get potholes fixed via Fill that hole, a website and app which allows users to easily report road defects, and campaigns for more investment in the roads cyclists use every day.

Campaigning for better roads

Cyclists suffer disproportionately from damaged road surfaces and up to 15% of cyclists injured in crashes dealt with by Cycling UK's legal services team occur due to road defects. Potholes certainly aren’t a minor inconvenience: they’re a serious safety risk.

Government investment is heavily weighted towards motorways and major roads, leaving the local roads cyclists use the most severely underfunded.

As well as running Fill that hole, Cycling UK campaigns locally and nationally to ensure that local authorities have road maintenance policies which prioritise the needs of cyclists, and that sufficient investment is made into the local roads cyclists use most often.

Every year, in spring, we also run a national Pothole Watch, to highlight the serious problems potholes pose to cyclists.

The history of Fill that hole

For decades, Cycling UK (then known as the Cyclists’ Touring Club; CTC) provided members with 'pothole cards' which allowed them to send details of potholes or other road defects to the relevant highway authority. Highway authorities welcome pothole reports from the public; although they remain ultimately responsible for inspecting and maintaining the road network.

In 2007 CTC launched a website which replaced the pothole cards with a simple interface which allowed road users to email in reports to local highway authorities. Since its launch over 65,000 road defects have been reported, over 20,000 of which have been recorded as fixed. Cycling UK urges all members to report potholes wherever they find them - particularly where the poor conditions represent a serious risk to cyclists.