Caithness Disabled Access Panel joins call from Caithness Roads Recovery to fix 'horrendous' pothole problem on far north roads
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Disabled people in Caithness have added their voice to a call for urgent action to sort out the 'horrendous' state of the roads across the county.
Helen Budge, chair of the Caithness Disabled Access Panel (CDAP), suffers from arthritis and says that, for people living with mobility issues, hitting a pothole can be a painful experience.
The group met members of the Caithness Roads Recovery organisation, which was set up by Iain Gregory and Helen Campbell to demand a solution to the pothole problems across the far north, to discuss the impact on disabled people.
Mrs Budge, of Mid Clyth, warned that the road between Halkirk and Newton Hill was a particular problem.
She said: "I was driving over to a garage in Halkirk with my husband to pick up a car and it [the pothole] just knocked my neck out for a couple of days. The pain is horrendous and you end up feeling nauseous.
"I usually don't take a lot of pills but I had to use extra painkillers afterwards."
She said the pothole problem in Caithness is especially bad and, though it "has always been an issue," she believes it has got much worse over the last year or so.
"For anyone disabled going over these potholes, it's going to set off their condition really badly," she added.
Mrs Budge says she has had to stop visiting her friend Jan McEwan, who lives at Newton Hill near Wick, because of the "terrible state of the road" in that area.
Mrs McEwan, who is chair of MS People Caithness and a member of CDAP, said: "Helen won't come and visit me now because the roads where I am are full of potholes.
"It's right from one end of the village to the other and it's absolutely horrendous. If it's raining they got full of water and you often don't know they're there.
"Children are out on their bikes and falling into the holes too. Something needs to be done."
Mr Gregory agreed and pointed out that everybody deserves to be able to get around safely.
He said: "We recently attended a meeting of CDAP, and were extremely concerned to hear of the issues which people with varying levels of mobility are encountering.
"The photograph of Mrs Budge, supported on walking aids, amidst a wasteland of potholes, summarises the situation. We have heard distressing reports from many people explaining that, due to the state of our roads and pavements, getting about by car, or by wheeling, or using walking-aids, has become painful and – in some cases – no longer possible.
"This is wholly unacceptable and it should be remembered that everyone in Caithness is entitled to safe access to all facilities."
Mrs Campbell added: "We have been campaigning for four months now and we still have not been advised as to how the Highland Council and the Scottish Government are going to help Caithness return to normal living. Safety and people’s lives must always come first."
The campaign group has pledged its "total support" to CDAP, and recently met with Inverness councillor Andrew Jarvie – a wheelchair user – to discuss the condition of the roads infrastructure in the county.
Mrs Budge also said that staycations and the popularity of the NC500 route were exacerbating the issue and that pavements in towns and villages also need urgent attention so that "disabled people [can] have a safe life".
She added: "We wish to be taken seriously by the government about the problems we are having on the roads and pavements in Caithness.
"Please give us our lives back so we can go out in a secure environment and take part in activities."
Highland Council announced earlier this week that it was seeking to ramp-up roads spending by £9 million over the next two years to help deal with the pothole problems in Caithness and across the region. The extra funding was due to be confirmed at yesterday's full meeting of the council.
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