HIGHWAYS chiefs fielded 1,198 complaints of potholes and other road defects in Wrexham during this year's cold snap - a 12 per cent reduction on last year.

The number of damaged surfaces inspected by council staff fell in the first three months of 2019 compared to last year (1,366 reports), possibly because of the milder winter weather.

The figures are revealed as Wrexham Council says it is committing £3.3m in the current financial year to improve the condition of the highway network.

Yet this cash is likely to be used for "quick fixes" rather than wholesale permanent improvements, which if carried out across Wrexham could cost up to £50m according to the council's chief officer for environment, Darren Williams.

The council chief was responding to recent complaints by councillors over the numbers of potholes on the area's roads with parts of Holt and Wrexham Industrial highlighted for concern.

Residents claim they are being forced to fill in potholes themselves because of the massive backlog in road repairs.

A council spokesman admitted: "Repairing potholes is a never ending process."

The authority says all defects are repaired in line with its Highways Safety Inspection Policy, but not all inspections lead to repairs.

There are currently no figures available of how much was spent repairing potholes among the 1,366 reports of surface defects reported during January and March.

But the spokesman added that the authority is "moving towards" a system of recording repairs in more detail.

"There is a global figure of the amount of funding the council is committing this current financial year to planned improvements to the condition of the highway network (£3.3m)," said the spokesman.

In Flintshire highways officials say they rectify defects following a risk assessment process.

Cllr Carol Ellis, of Buckley, says Mold Road, Liverpool Road and Mill Lane in the town are all problem areas.

She said: “It’s still pretty dire – on Facebook pages like the Buckley Residents Group you can see comments about it every day.

“When you’re driving, you’re concentrating on the potholes rather than the road. People know where they are and they swerve around them."

She added: “The road surfaces in general are so bad. Once you get some rain or overnight frost, the repairs just disintegrate."

A spokesman for Flintshire Council said: “Council officers routinely inspect the highway network and rectify defects identified through their inspections following a risk assessment process.

“This process balances safety issues with the resources to undertake temporary and permanent reinstatements.

“Route treatment schemes are programmed to commence shortly with additional funding secured for carriageway resurfacing from Welsh Government.

“The council continues to repair defects as they are identified and reported and, during periods of inclement weather, potholes can appear more frequently across the network.”