GARAGES in Worcester are reporting a rush of motorists needing to repair vehicles damaged by potholes.

Drivers are arriving with burst tyres, damaged wheels and problems with their suspension after hitting potholes around the county.

Alan Young, manager of HiQ Worcester in Droitwich Road, said: “We have seen a 10 per cent increase in business, probably just on potholes alone.

“People are hitting them and damaging their tyres and wheels. The cost is quite bad.”

Steve Henley, manager of Exhaust Tyre and Battery in Hylton Road, said: “It’s certainly something that has increased. I’ve not known it as bad as this year.”

Large numbers of potholes appeared on the county’s roads as a result of the freezing weather in January and February.

Worcestershire County Council has had to double its number of road repair workers to try to solve the problem. Teams have already repaired 4,500 potholes since the end of the bad weather.

But even when potholes have been fixed, problems remain. Andrew Robinson, aged 62, of Spetchley, near Worcester, was horrified when he drove down Park Street, off Wyld’s Lane in Worcester, two weeks ago.

He said: “The road is just potholes – not anything else, just potholes.

“Where they had the problem last time, they put tarmac in. The tarmac has come away and people have picked it up and put it on the side path.

“It’s made it even worse than going into the pothole. I have never seen anything so bad in my life. It was a joke.”

Cyclist Dan Thompson, 35, of Diglis, Worcester, suffered a burst tyre and injured his back when he hit a pothole which had already been fixed in Barbourne Road.

“The repair that they’ve done is still there,” he said. “The new hole is around it, where the road has disintegrated.” He estimated the new pothole is 2.5ins (6.5cm) deep.

Jon Fraser, Worcestershire County Council’s community and response manager, said: “The potholes on both Park Street and Barbourne Road have been patched as a temporary measure to make them safe until resurfacing work can take place.

“Resurfacing work of this nature has not been possible due to the very low temperatures experienced this year and it will require the closure of the roads.

“Both of these factors have been taken into account, along with the relative volumes of traffic along each road to minimise inconvenience to road users. The resurfacing of Park Street has been scheduled for Monday, March 8, and work is scheduled to be carried out on Barbourne Road overnight on Sunday, April 25.”

Motorists can report a problem pothole anywhere in the county by calling the Worcestershire Hub on 0845 6072005 or logging onto the council’s website at worcestershire.gov.uk/reportapothole