PUZZLED residents are hitting out at highways bosses for “grandstanding” over improvements to potholes across Essex saying Harwich’s roads are still in a “dangerous” state.

Essex County Council announced the number of potholes on roads dropped by a fifth over the past six months following major investment.

The authority said pothole numbers on local roads throughout Essex dropped from 4,954 to 3,961 during the period, despite the extra problems caused by worsening weather conditions.

But Wayne Kirk, of Fernlea Road, Harwich, said: “When the Government announced cash for a crusade on potholes I thought we might be in for some luck but I haven’t seen anything being done here.

“There is a massive pothole in Gwynne Road that is in a dangerous place on a junction with Main Road.

“It has simply been painted over – it’s a disgrace.”

Harwich’s county councillor Ivan Henderson accused the Conservatives-run council for “grandstanding” over the improvements in some areas when some roads are still in a dangerous condition.

The county council said following previous improvements to Essex’s main roads, additional funding had been provided to repair potholes on local roads from last July until the end of December.

The improvements came as the Government announced an extra £1,869,000 for Essex as part of the national Pothole Action Fund for the financial year 2017/18.

Eddie Johnson, Essex County Council cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “With more than 5,000 miles to look after across Essex, it is important that we keep key routes in the best condition possible to keep Essex residents and businesses moving.

“But this should not be at the expense of our local road network and I am delighted to see our push for improvements on local roads has made a real difference.

“We have teams out on a daily basis fixing potholes across the county this winter."