THE majority of potholes in East Lancashire will now be filled within 20 days, the county council hopes.

Last year 97 per cent of potholes found during highway safety inspections (HSI) were repaired within 30 days, new statistics reveal. The council’s own target of 90 per cent was smashed following the introduction of a new map-based system, which combined potholes reported by the public with those found during routine inspections.

Now the environment directorate is aiming to fix them within 20 working days.

Reports from the public will also be included, although only potholes that meet the council’s ‘prescribed intervention level’ will be counted. A total of 61,035 potholes were found last year, of which 59,304 were repaired within the target of 30 days.

The figure did not include defects reported by the public.