Transport planning bosses and motorists across the UK have been urged to press the next government into repairing pothole damage on the country's roads.
According to fuel card reseller The Fuelcard Company, ministers must make road maintenance a post-election priority in order to avoid a rise in accident numbers.
Research by the firm found that 14 per cent of drivers have been forced to swerve in order to avoid a pothole, while the same number have slipped on poor road surfaces and crashed.
Jakes de Kock, marketing director of The Fuelcard Company, said potholes have gone beyond being a minor irritant and now pose a severe risk to road safety.
"With a newly elected government, now is the time for Britain's motorists to press for change," he urged.
"It's time that road maintenance was given the political priority it deserves."
Mr de Kock's comments come after a poll conducted by vehicle trading service Exchange and Mart found that 62 per cent of road users were disappointed with the commitments to road repair outlined by Labour in the Budget last month.
Chancellor Alistair Darling pledged to spend £100 million on fixing potholes, but the majority of respondents felt greater investment was needed.
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