If there’s one thing that comes up more than anything else when I speak to people across Brightlingsea, Alresford, Great Bentley, Elmstead Market and Thorrington, it’s this:
the state of our roads, pavements and infrastructure
Potholes. Poor repairs. Unsafe junctions. Speeding traffic. Broken pavements.
These are real, everyday issues. They affect people every single day.
Getting to work. Walking to school. Visiting family. Running a business.
And the frustration I hear time and time again is not just that things go wrong, but that they keep going wrong.
A pothole gets reported. It gets patched. Then a few months later, or sometimes days later, it’s back again.
As I set out in my transport policy paper , this isn’t just about individual faults, it’s about a system that too often focuses on short term fixes instead of long term solutions.
Fix the Basics
My starting point is simple:
👉 Fix the basics
That means properly maintaining:
- roads
- pavements
- drainage
Because these are the foundations of everything else.
If they don’t work, nothing else works.
One of the biggest underlying issues is drainage.
Standing water breaks down road surfaces quickly and contributes directly to potholes forming again and again. It also covers up faults making damage to vehicles more likely, and it lethal to cyclists.
So if we’re serious about fixing roads, we have to fix drainage too.
Speeding: The Issue People Raise Again and Again
Another issue that comes up constantly is speeding.
And I completely understand why.
- People don’t feel safe crossing roads
- Parents worry about children walking to school
- Residents feel like traffic is moving too fast through their communities
This is why I set up and ran the Brightlingsea Community Speedwatch Group.
There are other things the county council can do locally though:
- better road design
- clearer signage
- targeted changes to layouts
But let’s be honest:
👉 speed limits on their own don’t work if they’re not enforced
The people who drive responsibly will follow them anyway.
The people who don’t… won’t.
So this has to be a joined up approach:
- sensible speed management
- better road design
- and proper enforcement where needed with the Police
It’s Not Just Roads
This is about more than just cars.
Pavements matter just as much.
I’ve had people tell me:
- they avoid certain routes because pavements are unsafe (some don’t even go out because of them)
- they struggle with pushchairs or mobility aids
- they feel forced into the car when they would rather walk
That’s not acceptable.
Walking is the most basic form of transport, and it needs to be safe and accessible.
The Bigger Picture
Across our area, we rely heavily on roads.
We’re not a big massive city with lots of alternatives.
- Brightlingsea is a single access settlement
- Villages rely on rural roads not designed for modern traffic
- Public transport is limited
So when things don’t work, it hits hard.
That’s why this matters so much.
What I Would Do
If elected, my focus would be:
- pushing for more durable, long term repairs, not repeat patching
- making drainage a priority, not an afterthought
- targeting known problem areas like unsafe junctions
- improving pavement quality and accessibility
- making sure issues are tracked, followed up and not forgotten
And just as importantly:
making sure Essex County Council is properly held to account
People should be able to see:
- what’s been reported
- what’s being done
- and whether it’s actually been fixed, and why not if it hasn’t
Questions Voters May Wish to Ask
When engaging with any candidate, it is reasonable to ask:
- What have you actually done locally to get issues fixed, not just reported?
- Give me an example of a road fault that you’ve seen through from reporting to fixing and what you actually did to help.
- How would you deal with potholes that keep coming back rather than being properly repaired?
- What would you do differently to improve how Essex County Council handles roads and maintenance?
- How would you approach speeding in areas where people don’t feel safe?
- Do you think speed limits alone are enough, or does enforcement need to be part of the answer?
- How would you make sure issues raised by residents don’t just get logged and forgotten?
- How will people know if you’ve actually made a difference after 12 months?
This Is What This Election Is About
This is exactly what a County Councillor should be focused on.
Not national politics.
Not party arguments.
The basics that affect people’s day to day lives
If we get this right, everything becomes easier:
- safer roads
- better journeys
- stronger communities
If we get it wrong, things just keep getting worse.
Final Thought
This isn’t complicated.
People aren’t asking for miracles.
They’re asking for things to work properly.
And that’s exactly what I’m focused on:
Fixing. The. Basics.