WORRIED drivers have claimed "dreadful" potholes in a Basildon road are causing a "regular risk of crashes" and sparking serious safety fears.

Ballards Walk is "plagued" with "awful" potholes, according to residents, with some claiming they have to veer to avoid causing serious damage to their vehicles.

Gavin Burrows, 70, said: "I have to veer across the road to miss the dreadful and countless potholes each day. I think my car has been badly damaged after driving over the potholes.

"There is a risk of crashes and I have been involved in several near misses when driving along that road. I am sure plenty of people are due lots of compensation for the damage to their vehicles."

The Local Democracy Reporting Service visited the site on April 14 and saw drivers slowing down, quickly oversteering and trying to manoeuvre around the road defects. There were around 40 potholes visible in the road, which stretches around half a mile.

Betty Davies, 80, added: "There is an awful noise in the car when you hit a hole and also when you hear others driving along this road. It's a total disgrace and we all keep reporting it. It also means we have to make slower journeys which in turn means I am late. I'd like to know what I'm paying tax for and whether our tax is being used for the roads maintenance."

A spokesperson for Essex Highways said: "Every road and pavement defect reported to us will be assessed by an inspector and addressed. Each defect we inspect is risk assessed based on a combination of how bad the pothole is, and how likely a driver is to drive over the defect.

"Due to the incredibly wet winter, road conditions have been affected all over the county, which is why additional funding for road repairs has been allocated.

"We have invested an extra £55 million, in addition to our annual highways' maintenance budget to repair potholes and defects since 2024. Since the start of April 2025, we have repaired more than 12,000 carriageway defects across Essex.

"We greatly appreciate the patience of residents and road users and encourage them to report any road or pavement defects at essexhighways.org/tell-us"