“8.7m carriageway failure at pedestrian crossing — seven times beyond legal repair threshold, five repairs nearby, still

SAFETY CRITICAL — A6 Wellingborough Road, Rushden — adjacent to zebra crossing, outside 145 Wellingborough Road Large pothole in the carriageway directly alongside the pedestrian crossing at this address. Measured on site 2 May 2026: 8.7 metres long, 20cm wide, 90–110mm deep. Photographs taken. The Council’s own Code of Practice sets the repair threshold at a pedestrian crossing at just 14mm depth. This defect exceeds that by seven times. Since November 2024, Council repair crews have attended this exact location five times and repaired five separate potholes — including one directly outside this property. On each visit, this defect was present and visible. It was not repaired. Under the Highway Code (Rule H2, amended January 2022), drivers MUST give way to pedestrians stepping onto a zebra crossing. This crossing is used daily by infant school children aged 4–7. Standard braking calculations show this pothole increases stopping distance by 4.3 metres at 30mph — the difference between stopping before the crossing and not stopping. The carriageway is 3.1 metres wide. Double-decker buses and 44-tonne fuel tankers use this road daily. Neither can steer around this defect. Every pass worsens the damage. A formal safety complaint letter has been sent to the Highways Department by recorded post on 2 May 2026. I am requesting Priority 1 response under NNC’s own published Highway Inspection Maintenance and Response Framework (April 2026). If a child is injured at this crossing, the Council has been warned.