Motorcyclists are warning Australia’s worsening pothole crisis is becoming a serious safety hazard, claiming crumbling roads are damaging vehicles and creating dangerous conditions that could lead to more crashes.

Hundreds of riders are expected to join the Adelaide Rideworthy Roads rally on October 31 as frustration grows over deteriorating road surfaces and what advocates say is a failure to properly address the problem.

The campaign has gathered momentum following the death of Victorian rider Peter “Ticki” Mason, with riders across the country increasingly raising concerns about the condition of roads and the risks posed by potholes.

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Potholes can form when water seeps through cracks in a road surface and weakens the foundations beneath. Heavy rain, freight traffic and repeated wear can then cause sections of bitumen to break apart, creating holes that can quickly grow larger if not permanently repaired.

While drivers often face costly repair bills from damaged tyres, wheels, suspension and steering components, motorcyclists face an added danger.

Even relatively small potholes can upset a bike’s stability, particularly while cornering, braking or travelling at speed.

Christ and Lydia Spiteri are the organisers of the Rideworthy Roads rally. Credit: Facebook/Rideworthy Roads

For Adelaide rider Chris Spiteri, worsening road conditions have become impossible to ignore.

Spiteri, who is organising Adelaide’s Rideworthy Roads rally alongside his wife, Lydia, said roads used regularly by motorcyclists had noticeably deteriorated over the past 12 months to 18 months.

“My wife and I are both keen motorcycle riders,” he said.

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“We have all disciplines of bikes at home. So we ride sports bikes, touring bikes, Harleys, off-road adventure bikes.”

Spiteri said riders were increasingly changing the way they rode simply to avoid road damage.

The problem, he said, was beginning to affect two of the most fundamental motorcycle safety skills: looking ahead and looking through corners.

“We’re finding more and more so, especially up in the Adelaide Hills, that we’re spending more time looking down right in front of us because the roads are starting to get so bad that it’s affecting those fundamental skills,” he said.

“So, it’s making riding unsafe, not just with the surface of the road but also with the skills that are required to ride a motorbike safely.”

Victorian rider Peter Mason died in a fall from his bike due to a pothole in the road. Credit: Facebook

Spiteri said, based on discussions within Victoria’s riding community in the wake of Mason’s death, many riders felt action was needed before another serious incident occurred.

“I thought we should really do something here because it’s not going to be long before we lose somebody or have a serious injury or serious accident because of the condition of our roads,” he said.

“It’s not a matter of if, it’s probably more of a matter of when.”

Spiteri questioned how road condition crashes are recorded, claiming incidents are often attributed to multiple factors rather than solely to road defects.

“Funnily enough, there’s nothing recorded,” he said of data he looked for relating to motorcycle crashes caused by road conditions.

“I don’t know of any motorcycle accidents that have happened because of the road surface, but I can guarantee you there’s some out there.”

The temporary fix on Ridley Rd at Mannum is failing. Credit: Jubba Photography.

One of the roads drawing criticism from riders is Ridley Rd between Sedan and Mannum, in South Australia’s Murraylands region.

After hearing complaints from other motorcyclists, Adelaide rider Dylan Thorp decided to inspect the route for himself.

What he found shocked him.

“I got out to Ridley Rd, documented those potholes,” he said.

“There was a stretch of road there that almost looked like you were riding on the moon.

“I reckon in the span of 500m there would have been at least 80 potholes about the size, if not bigger than, a dinner plate.”

Concerned by the conditions, Thorp began documenting the issue and showing riders how to report dangerous potholes to authorities.

During the process, he contacted officials and said he was told crews could respond to serious potholes within four hours.

“I got off the phone and I thought, ‘There is absolutely no way they’re going to have a team out there to repair those potholes within four hours’,” he said.

Thorp said social media users had reported the road in poor condition for some time, with some drivers claiming their vehicles had been damaged.

“I’d seen on Facebook comments people mentioning how those potholes had been out there for months,” he said.

“There’s other people commenting that they’ve damaged wheels and cracked wheels, buckled wheels.”

He said riders expected roads to be held to the same standards as the vehicles using them.

“If we have to ride a motorcycle that is roadworthy, then we should be able to ride on roads that essentially are rideworthy,” he said.

The dangers have already affected his own family.

During a group ride through the Adelaide Hills, Thorp’s father struck a pothole that buckled the motorcycle’s front wheel and flattened its tyre.

The ride ended immediately.

“Within 10 seconds he was pulled over,” Thorp said.

“Buckled front wheel, deflated tyre, that was the ride over.”

The pair had to leave the bike on the roadside, retrieve a trailer and return to collect it before repairs could be carried out at their own expense.

Paul Smith wants the roads to be repaired. Credit: Jubba Photography

Fellow rider Paul “Jubba” Smith said he had also become frustrated by what he claimed were recurring problems on Ridley Rd.

After hearing reports repairs were already failing, Smith returned to inspect the area himself.

“I got told by people that it is failing again already,” he said.

“There are these brand spanking new roadworks that they’ve just sort of done and they’ve got holes in them already after probably a week.”

Smith questioned whether enough attention was being paid to underlying road foundations rather than surface repairs alone.

“I was standing on the side of the road as a big road train went past and I could feel the ground rumble,” he said.

“It seems strange that I could feel this rumble in the ground. I’m thinking, well, what’s underneath the road?”

Like many motorists, Smith said he believed repeated encounters with potholes had taken a toll on his vehicle.

“I’m sure my suspension is sagged from repetitively hitting them all the time,” he said.

He said attempting to recover repair costs could be difficult.

“I tried to hit them up for costs but I can’t provide the appropriate proof.”

“We all just have to wear it, you know, and that’s what we’re sick of.”

A Department for Infrastructure and Transport spokesperson said severe winter weather had accelerated damage across large sections of South Australia’s road network.

“Heavy rain accelerated deterioration across the road network, causing potholes to form rapidly,” the spokesperson said.

The department acknowledged conditions on parts of Ridley Rd had fallen below acceptable standards.

“We acknowledge that this section of road has deteriorated to a level that is not acceptable to the Department or the community.”

The spokesperson said the State Government had recently transitioned to a new maintenance contractor for Regional South areas, including the Adelaide Hills, Barossa, Riverland, Mid North, Fleurieu Peninsula and South East.

More than 11,000sqm of Ridley Rd has been repaired since the start of the month, while permanent repairs between Sedan and Mannum are underway.

The department said remaining works were expected to be completed by early next year, with warning signs remaining in place while repairs continue.