A GLASGOW cycling group has hit out at the city’s dangerous roads after professional athletes dealt with dozens of punctures during the 2018 European Championships races.

The Glasgow Green Cycle Club said one member of their group broke her thumb after her bike hit a pothole during a ride.

Glasgow Times:

Andy Dobinson, above, who founded the club in 2011, said: “We have got members who have stopped coming out with us because they just think it is too dangerous due to the state of the roads.

“We also have had a member come off recently who hit a sunken pothole. She broke her thumb and was in a plaster for six weeks. All the council did was put a cone over it.”

READ MORE: What a letdown: Puncture-fest for cycling aces on Glasgow's streets

He added: “We have a format where we call out potholes and obstacles in the road during a ride. You just about end up going home with a lost voice because all your doing is calling out manhole covers or potholes. It is actually dangerous.”

Glasgow Times:

Andy’s comments come after we reported earlier this week that former Olympic champion Chris Boardman spoke on the BBC of the ‘unbelievable’ number of punctures during Sunday’s men’s cycling road race which attracted 136 riders from across the world.

Boardman, who wore the yellow jersey on three separate occasions at the Tour De France, compared the Glasgow circuit to the notoriously tough Paris-Roubaix race, where riders pass through rough, cobbled farm roads, and at one stage expressed concern that the high number of punctures would see the athletes use up all the spare bike wheels.

READ MORE: Sick vandals urinate on and set fire to East End school’s sensory garden for vulnerable pupils

His comments are not surprising to the city cycle club who know only too well the difficulties faced when riding on Glasgow roads.

Glasgow Times:

Outside Dalmarnock train station

Club members say they have faced problems on key routes including Cumbernauld Road in Dennistoun; outside Dalmarnock train station; London Road in Parkhead; Morrison Street in Tradeston; South Street in Scotstoun and sections of Maryhill Road between Sandbank Street and Cowal Road.

Glasgow Times:

Parkhead

Andy said: “We road the course on Sunday morning and it was treacherous. There was sunken manhole covers and potholes. You have to bear in mind, there is a rider called Peter Sagan who actually won the Paris-Roubaix race and he pulled out.”

He added: “What happened in the men’s cycling road race was no surprise at all.

“I love the fact the event was hosted in Glasgow but that course was just treacherous. The states of the roads in and around Glasgow are just an absolute danger to cyclists.”

Glasgow Times:

Andy says the club, which has around 180 members, is preparing for a tough winter given what they have experienced on the roads already this year.

He said: “It has always been an issue but we see the roads getting gradually worse.

“We can see that we are in for quite a tough winter because the state of the roads are worse now than they were this time last year.”

READ MORE: Pothole misery - Readers send in pictures of craters causing chaos for drivers

He added: “The council need to spend some money on it and stop patching the roads.

“There is a tendency to spray the tar on or patch it. In winter, water gets in, it freezes and breaks up.

“What they need to do is fundamentally repair the holes properly but I appreciate that comes with funding and money.”

He continued: “We have a BMX and mountain bike facility; we have got one of the biggest cycle cross communities in the whole of the country; we have got a velodrome and we are promoting cycling.

READ MORE: Learner drivers ‘should have to spot potholes to pass test’

“We also have loads of junior clubs who are ride accredited but you go on the road and you’re potentially going to crash.”

A Glasgow 2018 spokesman told the Evening Times earlier this week: “The technical officials were content and no issues were raised from within the field.”

Glasgow Times:

A Glasgow City Council spokesman added: “As far as we are aware, the teams involved in the men’s race have not raised any concerns about the condition of the route with the event organisers, Glasgow 2018.

“The exact same route was also used for the women’s road race seven days earlier without attracting any adverse comment at all.

“Our on-going repairs and resurfacing programme will see £11.6m invested in the city’s roads and footways by the end of this financial year.”

Earlier this year, The Evening Times ran a spothole campaign which encouraged our readers to send in roads which were covered in potholes.

For more on the Glasgow Green Cycle Club, visit here