I rode through the edge of what appeared to be a puddle and it was hiding a massive pothole which was about a metre long, a metre wide and about 16cm deep and I hit and there was a big bang. I broke my thumb, dislocated my shoulder, cracked my helmet, and I was actually relatively lucky I think.

We train a lot in various countries around the world and I don’t ride on any roads like ours and not in a good way. It not safe for motorists, for anybody, for pedestrians.

In 2017/18 the Welsh Government allocated £30m to local authorities to maintain and prevent the deterioration of the local highway network. A further £60m has been provided by Welsh Government over three years to support a local government public highway refurbishment programme.

This investment by has been warmly welcomed by local authorities as it allows an ongoing works, including the resurfacing of the worst stretches of highway, as opposed to short term ‘patch and mend’ repairs. In the face of ongoing financial pressure, local authorities will continue to work constructively with Welsh Government to identify the level of funding needed to maintain the highway asset.

The network is regularly inspected and any defects such as potholes with immediate or imminent implications for safety are addressed as a matter of urgency.

Local authorities are responsible for maintaining local roads and generally fund this activity from the block grant which they receive annually from the Welsh Government for all their services. However the draft budget, announced in October for 2019/20, includes £60 million for a road refurbishment scheme to repair the damage caused by a series of hard winters and last summer’s heatwave.