FRUSTRATED residents are calling for action over ‘massive’ potholes they claim are making their lives ‘miserable’.

Around a dozen holes have appeared in Dalton Street, Burnley in recent months, with some reaching up to a metre and a half wide and 10cms deep.

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Residents and councillors have complained to Lancashire County Council but they claim their calls have been ignored and no repairs have been carried out.

Drivers using the road, which connects to Coal Clough Lane and runs parallel to Rossendale Road, are being forced to crawl along to prevent damage to their vehicles, residents said.

The potholes have appeared at the bottom end of the street, used regularly by buses and motorists, near to Hameldon Community College.

County Hall bosses said they inspected the road at the beginning of the year but found no urgent repairs were needed.

One Dalton Street resident, who suffers from back problems, said the bumps are an everyday problem.

He said: “When I’m in a car and we go over the bumps the pain is crucifying.

“The holes are horrible and they must be doing damage to the cars.

“They’ve been there for months now and nothing has been done.

“The road has a 20mph speed limit but I don’t think anyone gets up to that speed because they have to go so much slower over these bumps.

“They need to be filled in and sorted fast.”

The county council said it will repair holes deeper than four centimetres equating to around one-and-a-half inches.

John O’Connor, 70, who has lived in the road for more than 30 years, said the poor road quality has always been an issue.

He said: “The council come and fix the holes, but they always keep coming back.

“They’ve become really big and its so frustrating for everyone down here.

“You try to weave in and out of them but because there is so many you can’t dodge them all.

“In the perfect world the whole road would need completely resurfacing but that is unlikely to happen.”

Neighbour Lorraine Hartley, 67, said people have become accustomed to the uneven road.

She said: “I do a lot of driving and my car takes a lot of impact from the holes.

“They are awful and something needs to be done.

“This road can get busy so it’s very surprising it is not looked at more carefully.”

Potholes are formed when water freezes and expands under the road’s surface.

It causes the road to weaken and deteriorate and small holes start to appear.

Cllr Lian Pate, executive member of community services on Burnley Council, said she was ‘shocked’ when the state of the road was brought to her attention.

She said: “When I first saw the road I was totally taken back and not many things shock me.

“It’s in a really poor condition and I’m asking the county council to attend to the road immediately.

“The worst pothole I have seen was 10cms deep.

“It’s a bus route. It should not have holes as large as this.

“I have gone out and measured them myself and they are over the regulation limit.

“A resident of nearby Fenwick Street brought the issue to my attention because he was so exasperated with the problem.

“There are older people living in the area who are finding the degrading surfaces not only difficult but dangerous to walk on.

“I’d go as far as to say it’s making some of the residents miserable.”

County Hall bosses said the road would be inspected again but all repairs are carried out on a priority basis.

A Lancashire County Council spokesman said: “We will inspect this location and repair any potholes that meet our current intervention levels.

“However a recent inspection of this road in January did not result in any defects at intervention level being picked up.

“There are some road surfaces throughout the county that are uneven and unsightly but we have to focus limited resources to make repairs where they are most needed.”