If there was a pothole competition in Cork, Cobh would win hands down

Vera Hartland was a well-known local councillor in Cobh back in the days when we had an Urban District Council. She lived in St. Patricks Square at the top of East Hill with her brother Ernie. She operated a small sweetshop from her back garden, but as children, we were half afraid to go in there because she could eat you alive.

Miss Hartland as she was known (only the very brave dared to address her as Vera) was famous for her sharp tongue and could be very direct at council meetings. On one occasion in 1960, she was unhappy with a decision the county council had taken.

She took it up at a meeting of the Southern Committee of Cork County Council, and asked the Chairman, Mr. M J Corry, T.D. for an explanation. She said the chairman did not have the power to do this on his own. “I challenge him to give the facts so that you may judge him here with me.” she said.

Fighting talk and she was well able to fight for the town. She didn’t always get her way, but she wasn’t beyond banging a few heads together. It’s a pity we don’t have Vera around today because it seems to me that Cobh has become a forgotten land. And has been for some time.

Back in 2008 I wrote a letter to the Irish Examiner complaining about the rising cost of motor tax and the poor condition of our roads. Something I had been banging on about for a while. I had just bought a new car in 1997 when I hit a pothole in east Cork. The car developed a permanent limp as a result.

The road into Cobh back then was in bad shape too, littered with bumps, humps, depressions, potholes and general uneven surfaces. In fact, it was difficult to find a stretch of roadway that was free of blemishes all of which were contributing to a reduction in the shelf life of my car. I finished my letter by looking for accountability given that the grit and liquid tar system for filling potholes wasn’t fit for purpose.

Fast forward to today, 28 years later, and sadly that same letter could still apply to the condition of the road network in Cobh. I was driving home from my early morning swim recently when my car went into a pothole with a thump. A little later after dropping my wife to work, I forgot about it and went into the damn thing again.

Putting four new tyres on any car isn’t cheap, so I was rightly peeved at the prospect of having them damaged. The roads around Cobh do nothing to extend their life expectancy and if you drive up the hills coming into Cobh, you will notice an amount of hardened concrete on the road surface that has come from overloaded cement trucks.

They spill part of their load on steep inclines, then leave it to solidify and to wear out our tyres. This has been going on for years and I have never seen or heard of any company being compelled to clean up their mess.

A spin around the town will reveal a further network of poor, damaged and uneven road surfaces and it got so bad recently that many took to social media to voice their concerns. One contributor on Facebook complained that the roads were crying out for resurfacing but that filling the holes with a bucket of tarmac doesn’t work.

Another complained about the state of the roads and footpaths in Cobh and said it was a waste of saying anything about it. Another contributor raised an important point. She wondered about the accountability and questioned how the contracts for road repair were awarded. She also asked who was responsible for signing off on the work done by the contractors and who was accountable when the work wasn’t up to scratch? Very valid questions.  

In fairness to two local councillors, they took to social media to reply as they regularly do. They are both easily contactable and they make themselves available to the public and always respond to issues raised. I have no doubt they voice our concerns at their monthly meetings too, but I can’t help wondering if anyone is listening to them.

But what really bothered me was that they both fully agreed with the complaints. They also agreed that the situation was unsatisfactory but surprisingly, both admitted they were helpless to do anything about it.

One said,” We need the velocity patcher to come into the area and do a proper job but unfortunately this is the procedure all over the county and I can totally understand people’s frustration and will speak to them again today.”

The other commented “Agree fully and all local councillors keep raising this. Unfortunately, this is the procedure for fixing potholes and it’s a country wide issue. It doesn’t work but will keep raising the issue to seek improvement in the methods of repair.”

And this is where I get confused. If it’s known that the process for fixing potholes is flawed and it’s also known that it doesn’t work, then why the hell are we not changing the process? It seems to me that raising the issue month after month with no prospect of change falls in line with Einstein’s description of insanity.

When Minister for Transport, Eamon Ryan announced an investment programme for regional and local roads in 2023, he said “It makes more sense to protect and repair our roads quickly rather than letting them fall into more expensive disrepair.” True, but if the process for repairing roads is broken, then we’re just wasting money. May as well fill the potholes with cash.

If only we still had Vera.