- Does swerving to avoid potholes add miles to drivers' annual journeys?
- Exclusive new analysis from Select Car Leasing and the University of Reading
- Could add up to 70 miles annually in worst case scenarios
- Pothole slaloming is also an ever present danger for all road users
- Read our Great British Pothole Poll 2026 for the full picture
(A typical potholed road in the UK, Adobe stock)
Swerving to dodge potholes could be quietly adding up to 70 extra miles to drivers’ annual journeys, experts say.
The additional mileage burden has been labelled a ‘secret pothole tax’ faced by UK motorists already hit with expensive road crater-related repair bills.
The figures have been revealed by Select Car Leasing thanks to exclusive analysis from academics at the University of Reading.
The 70-mile figure is the equivalent of a journey between London and Northampton and represents the most extreme scenario faced by a driver covering 10,000 miles annually.
But it can be reduced by improved driver behaviour - and being able to anticipate and react to potholes can lessen the impact.
Graham Conway, Managing Director at Select Car Leasing, said: “Despite increased government funding to tackle the issue, potholes continue to blight UK motorists and many drivers resort to slaloming around road cavities in order to protect their vehicles from damage.
“But it’s alarming to see just how many miles those swerves can add to overall driver journeys over the course of a year and it’s a secret pothole tax that hasn’t been highlighted until now.”
Estimates vary as to how many potholes the average motorist encounters during a typical journey but some council reports suggest a figure as high as 20 potholes per mile.
Select took that 20 potholes-per-mile figure and tasked the University of Reading’s Simon Chandler-Wilde, Professor of Applied Mathematics, and Paul Glaister CBE, Emeritus Professor of Mathematics and Mathematics Education, to crunch the numbers.
They calculated the amount of swerve needed and the distance over which the swerve takes place.
The swerve deviation - when compared to travelling in a straight line - will vary according to the size of the pothole, the speed of the vehicle, and driver reaction times.
At the top end of the scale and for the most severe swerves, a driver could increase their mileage by 0.7% - the equivalent of 70 miles per year when covering 10,000 miles annually. That’s for a pothole deviation of around 1.5m over a 10m stretch of tarmac.
But by reducing the severity of a dodge - by being more cautious, noticing the pothole earlier, and slowing your speed - the figure dips to around 0.3% - the equivalent of around 30 miles extra per year weaving in and out of potholes.
Professor Chandler-Wilde said: “The message is clear; the more severe the swerve, the more miles a motorists could add to their yearly total. Conversely, the better you’re able to anticipate and react to a pothole, the fewer miles a driver will have to travel over the course of a year.
“That potential 70-mile figure is perhaps small in the grand scheme of things and over the course of a year, but it means more time spent behind the wheel and more fuel being consumed - neither of which will be welcomed by UK drivers.”
The figures are backed by a recent ‘Great British Pothole Poll’ by Select Car Leasing.
The survey of 1,000 UK motorists found the vast majority of UK drivers (96%) admit taking evasive action to avoid hitting a pothole, steering around the obstacle to avoid damaging their car.
More than half (57%) reported having to steer around potholes on ‘most journeys’ while almost a third (28%) said they swerved around the road to evade craters on ‘every single journey’ they take.
Select’s Mr Conway added: “Let’s not forget that swerving to avoid potholes also puts other road users at risk, particularly if you’re having to stray out of your lane to do so. It’s a serious problem, with almost 40% of our Great British Pothole Poll respondents reporting how swerving to avoid a pothole puts them in a ‘potentially dangerous situation with another vehicle’ on ‘every’ or ‘most’ journeys they take.
“Slow your speed, increase your distance to the vehicle in front so that you have better visibility of the road ahead, and don’t put others in harm’s way.”
How many potholes per mile on UK roads?
As we've pointed out above, estimates vary when it comes to the number of potholes a typical motorist encounters on a given journey.
At the lower end of the scale, the RAC suggests a figure of around 6 potholes per mile, based on their own patrol figures and council FOI data.
Others suggest the total could be much higher - and that likely tallies with the experience of our readers.
Insurance company Go Compare looked at the number of potholes reported to councils and found some authorities with 22 potholes per mile of road, as per 2024 figures.
The actual number will vary wildly according to each council and how quick they are able to use the extra budget to instigate repairs.
For the purposes of this research, we picked an extreme of 20 potholes per miles to paint a worst-case-scenario picture.
The science bit: Five different swerve scenarios proposed by the University of Reading team:
(Graph credit: University of Reading)
1. Swerve Deviation = 1m, Length = 10m: increase of the miles travelled of 0.3%.
2. D = 1.5m, L = 10m: A larger swerve, maybe due to a larger pothole, or slower driver reaction – possibly due to increase in speed of vehicle. Increase of the miles travelled of 0.66%.
3. D = 1m, L = 15m: Swerving the same amount but over a longer distance, possibly being more cautious or noticing the pothole earlier maybe due to slower driving speed or greater visibility. Increase of the miles travelled of 0.2%.
4. D = 1.5m, L = 15m: A larger swerve, maybe due a larger pothole, or slower driver reaction – possibly due to increase in speed of vehicle, but over a longer distance, possibly being more cautious or noticing the pothole earlier maybe due to slower driving speed or greater visibility. Increase of the miles travelled of 0.45%.
5. D = 1m, L = 5m: A more violent swerve over a shorter distance, how some drivers navigate potholes – whether they are familiar with where they are or are taken by surprise. Increase of the miles travelled of 0.57%.
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