‘Pothole vigilante’ plants flowers in road defects to highlight repair delays

Smith-Hagget said he is trying to highlight an important issue

A landscape gardener from Horsham has gained widespread attention online after taking an unusual approach to highlighting potholes across West Sussex — planting flowers in them.

Harry Smith-Hagget has been filling damaged sections of road with bright primroses, filming the results and sharing the videos on social media, where several clips have gone viral.

The stunt has attracted significant public interest and, in some cases, appears to have prompted road repairs.

Smith-Hagget said his aim is to draw attention to the condition of local roads.

“It’s just not good enough,” he said. “You pay money to drive on the roads and they aren’t fit for your car.”

He added that potholes can cause serious damage to vehicles, leaving drivers with expensive repair bills.

“Rims are getting destroyed, leaving people needing to replace tyres,” he said. “One of my friends had to have three new tyres in the last month.”

Viral campaign prompts repairs

Over the past two weeks, Smith-Hagget said he has planted flowers in around a dozen potholes, posting the results online.

Several of those potholes were reportedly repaired soon after appearing in his videos.

However, the floral displays often do not remain in place for long.

“I’ve had some which have lasted two or three days, and some just 10 minutes,” he said.

He hopes the videos not only raise awareness but also bring a moment of humour to viewers.

“Hopefully they make people smile as well.”

Council warns campaign could be unsafe

West Sussex County Council has responded by warning that the approach could create safety risks.

The authority said its highway teams are already working to address road defects following a difficult winter.

According to the council, nearly 7,000 potholes have been repaired since the start of the year, with 22 repair crews working additional hours to tackle the problem.

Officials also highlighted the scale of the challenge, noting the county has around 2,500 miles of roads to maintain.

The council said it prioritises the most severe defects first and encourages residents to report potholes through its website, where users can upload photographs and location details.

Technology helping identify road damage

Meanwhile, technology is increasingly being used to help authorities identify and manage road defects.

Horsham-based technology company Metricell has developed a smartphone application called Stan, which can map road damage quickly.

The system allows users to either photograph potholes directly or mount their phone in their vehicle so the app can automatically detect cracks and potholes while driving.

The app has recently received approval from the Department for Transport, which is encouraging councils to explore digital tools that can improve how road conditions are monitored.