MORE than half of all people questioned believe that parish, town and district councils in the Cotswolds should help pay to fix problematic potholes in their area.

The poll, which has been set up on the Standard’s website, shows that 59 per cent of online readers think that smaller local authorities should help pick up the bill for pothole maintenance.

Currently holes in the road are the sole responsibility of Gloucestershire Highways, a subsection of the county council.

The online poll also showed that 39 per cent of readers think that road maintenance should remain a county-led operation while two per cent said they did not care.

Andrew Tubb, chief executive of Cirencester Town Council, said that, while potholes are not its responsibility, it does support the county council in other ways.

He said: “In 2013/1, the town council set aside additional funding of up to £8,000 to support highway related projects. This has included enhancing winter maintenance provision and the taking on of cutting highway verges and a roundabout at Kingshill North.”

Cotswold District Council has said that the region’s potholes will continue to fall under the jurisdiction of the county council as “parish and district councils have no remit of funding” for the operation.

However, earlier this month CDC did fill in a number of large potholes in its Beeches car park in Cirencester that were causing problems for motorists.

Potholes have become a contentious issue among residents in recent months with many opting to take part in the Standard’s hunt to find the Cotswolds’ worst affected roads.

George Smith submitted an amusing picture of a toy tractor struggling to climb out of a deep pothole in Cirencester’s Thomas Street.

He said: “Thomas Street gets repaired once a fortnight which is an utterly pointless exercise as the tarmac is so old it can never be repaired. What a waste of money.”

The most frequently used roads in the Cotswolds are supposed to be inspected on a monthly basis, according to Cllr Vernon Smith, GCC cabinet member for highways.

He said: “Smaller ones are programmed to be repaired within 28 days and unsafe ones are fixed immediately. We identify and fix hundreds of potholes each day. In the last 12 months we have fixed nearly 50,000 in Gloucestershire.”

Anyone who would like to submit a problem pothole photo can do so by visiting www.wiltsglosstandard.co.uk.