A new ‘traffic light’ rating map has been issued by to enable drivers to see how well their potholes are being fixed.

The Department of Transport (DoT) has published the first-ever map with red, amber and green ratings, allowing the public to see which local highway authorities are repairing roads effectively.

The new gradings, the first of their kind, grade authorities as red, amber or green, based on road condition and how effectively they are spending the government’s £1.5 billion funding to fix potholes and invest in long-term measures to maintain roads in the South West. The average vehicle repair bill from hitting potholes is about £320.

Councils scoring green are investing in long-term preventative measures rather than just patching up potholes, while also maintaining good road conditions and investing significantly into improving local roads.

Amber ranked councils, such as Devon County Council (DCC), showed some of these qualities, but with room for improvement. A red rating means expected standards in current road conditions, pothole prevention or wider maintenance are not being met.

David Newcombe, who campaigns for improved quality and quantity of road repairs in the Tavistock area, criticised the traffic light rating.

He said it gave an overly optimistic view of DCC’s performance which he monitors: “Highways may have contractors that assess the roads, but they also have a tool that members of the public can use – as I do regularly. But they tend to either deny, dismiss or ignore what I report.

“The state of the roads are plain for everyone to see. How many areas around Tavistock have been waiting repair for over a year? How many council workers actually report potholes on their own system?

“The council is in denial. They have neglected the roads to the point where repairs have not become financially viable.

“The Drake statue junction in Tavistock was eventually resurfaced after neglect and within a month the road surface had a pothole. We are now looking at the larger area being redone. How much money has been wasted on sub-quality work?”

David added: “They have employed a traffic light system which in my opinion is misleading as DCC is more of a dark orange in my opinion.”

Cllr Dan Thomas, DCC cabinet member for highways, said: “Every pound of funding Devon receives from the DoT is invested directly into maintaining our highways.

“Devon’s been historically underfunded, leaving us facing huge challenges. We don’t receive enough money from government to properly look after a road network of this size and condition.”

DCC has a highways repair backlog of around £390m, needing £102m annually to just keep Devon’s roads in their existing condition.

But DCC did not receive enough funding for the full highways service, let alone for road maintenance.

Cllr Thomas said the amber rating was a ‘fair reflection of the funding pressures.’ The only way to achieve a green rating was to be properly funded.

The interactive map showing highways authorities’ ratings is now live and https://tinyurl.com/4ywfdf83

Visit highway maintenance on the gov.uk website.