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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Antony Thrower & Carmelo Garcia

Prankster paints rude shapes on road to highlight poor state of town's potholes

A prankster has shown the state of the roads by scrawling x-rated drawings around potholes plaguing a road.

Several crude yellow drawings have appeared around the holes which litter Rodborough Hill in Stroud, Gloucester.

It is unknown who was behind the road-based prank but Councillor Robin Layfield said he had recently heard from a resident who has lost three tyres to the cobbled surface in as many months.

The rude shapes appear to be in the form of a penis, which has angered other council members who claim it could be a "distraction" to drivers.

Others say the rude paintings simply demonstrate "how bad the road conditions have become".

Mr Layfield told GloucestershireLive: “This demonstrates just how bad the road conditions have become.

“Regular adverse weather events and the increasing size and weight of vehicles are causing our roads to literally crumble away.

“Whilst I can't condone people taking action of this nature - putting themselves at risk by standing in the middle of the road and painting symbols that may be more unsettling than humorous for members of our community, it does highlight how urgent the need for action from county council and highways is.

"My family and I have been directly affected by the deteriorating road conditions as my daughter broke her arm and lost a tooth after being thrown from her bike going over a large pothole on her way home from school last year.”

Martyn Midgley, area highway manager at Gloucestershire County Council, slammed the person responsible for the drawings scrawled on the road.

He added: “Rude and offensive graffiti painted on the roads puts those doing the painting and others at risk by causing a potential distraction to road users.

“We are reviewing the extent of the markings and then will organise our work crews to remove the graffiti from the road as quickly as possible.

“This will take crews off pothole filling duties as they tackle the graffiti, which is another cost to the taxpayer and may cause drivers short delays to their journeys.”

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