OAP's road pothole battle is finally resolved

A SIX-YEAR campaign by a retired construction industry expert to have potholes repaired in his neighbourhood has at last paid off — and it will cost Highland Council £72,000.

During that time Bill Anderson has written dozens of letters complaining about the state of two Kinmylies roads — Blarmore Avenue, where he lives, and adjacent Highfield Avenue — to the local authority, councillors and transport officials in a bid to get the situation rectified.

The two roads are littered with dozens of potholes, sinking manhole covers and drains and several road surface cracks.

Mr Anderson, a community councillor, has battled tirelessly on behalf of his neighbours and family members, who use the roads regularly, to have them brought up to scratch and now his tenacity has reaped dividends.

Residents in the two streets this week received letters from contractors Pat Munro (Alness) on behalf of the council stating work would begin on Monday and end on 29th March.

The roads, which are part of a bus route, will be resurfaced in sections.

A delighted Mr Anderson contacted The Inverness Courier, which has supported his campaign from the outset and published letters and articles outlining his grievances about the potholes and lack of work being done.

"This has been going on for six years, but being retired I had nothing else to do but nag at the council," he said.

"That’s the only way you seem to get things done — to keep up a relentless campaign.

"I feel absolutely fantastic about it.

He added: "I do not even drive myself, but I have great sympathy for those drivers that use the two roads in question. That is why I have been campaigning to get something done."

The council had sent workers out on several occasions to patch up the road but the repairs did not last.

Mr Anderson believes this time the council is tackling the job properly.

Inverness West councillor Allan Duffy took up the issue after receiving complaints about the situation from Mr Anderson.

"It’s a wee bit of a nightmare up there," he said. "It will be better to get the road resurfaced rather than go on just filling in potholes. It will make the road last a lot longer."

The news was welcomed by homeowners in the area, as well as Robert Bowie, vice-chairman of Muirtown Community Council.

"In the past the council have just gone up there and put down a load of chips and poured some tar on top of it and within a couple of days it’s all gone," he said. "These roads were never designed for the heavy bus traffic that is using them — that’s a big part of the problem.

"The council should also look at other roads up there that have been neglected."