Brentwood Borough Council is setting up a “multi-agency taskforce” to tackle potholes in its town centre.

The council will create a panel, made up of taxi drivers, business owners, councillors, and other stakeholders, to work together to improve the state of the town’s High Street.

Council leader Barry Aspinell said residents had been complaining to the authority about the road “all the time”, reports the BBC.

Essex Highways said the road is inspected monthly, with extra visits to follow up on any reports it receives from members of the public.

Mr Aspinell said Brentwood High Street had “changed beyond all recognition” since block paving and cobbles were laid in 2009.

“The pavements are all over the place. Nothing is safe or steady, but the road itself is appalling.”

He added that he had been highlighting the issue “since I became leader of the council”.

“I want to set up a multi-agency taskforce to make the town centre more attractive for residents and visitors and make it safer. We haven’t had a first meeting yet but I’ve said about it at a full council meeting.”

Essex Highways said it has to prioritise and schedule its work to fix the most urgent issues first.

“All defects reported to us are assessed by an inspector and prioritised accordingly,” a spokesman said.

PIC-RAC