WATCH: 'Is this Offaly's worst road' - Anger over brutal condition of Offaly road

Locals in one Offaly village say the roads in the area should be a criminal offence after recent bad weather made some routes almost unusable for motorists.

One local resident in Rhode, Vinny Grennan, spoke to the Offaly Express about the state of the roads in the area after sharing a video on social media of one treacherous route.

The Garr road out of the village is littered with deep potholes and drivers often have no way of avoiding a nasty impact.

Vinny says: "People have been inundating the council with complaints about the roads. Ever since work on the wind farm started, and I'm not blaming that, the roads around here are absolutely horrendous."

"There are some seriously dangerous potholes in the whole area. There is one near Rhode bridge that's around five inches deep and a foot wide," he added.

We are supposed to have our cars road worthy however it’s a pity ⁦@offalycoco⁩ don’t keep the roads around Rhode roadworthy… ⁦@gardainfo⁩ who are over roads policing surely this is a criminal offence to leave the roads like this ? ⁦@Midlands103⁩ ⁦⁦ pic.twitter.com/VFsGGXZqYz

— Vinny Grennan (@vinnygrennan) February 10, 2024

Locals are frustrated that patchwork fixes being employed by the council are being ripped out almost instantly by traffic and weather.

Residents have contacted Offaly County Council who say they are aware of the "challenging" road conditions but added that only temporary repairs are feasible at the moment given the inclement weather and staff availability.

They have said that the roads funding plan for the county is due in the next few weeks and that some areas of Rhode have been identified for upgrades.

Vinny Grennan said: "I'm expected to keep my car roadworthy. If I don't tax my car, I'll be done but the roads can be left the way they are. Several people have burst tyres or damaged cars and are getting nowhere with the council."

Vinny asked "what is Roads Policing all about" suggesting that the condition of roads should be checked in a similar way and councils held accountable. 

"Is that [Roads Policing] just another arm of fining us all. Surely when they are passing on the likes of this to council and ensuring the safety of the roads. Do they not have a duty of care to the public?"

He says roads in other counties and even other parts of Offaly outside North Offaly are "perfectly fine" but his area has suffered from not having a TD over the years.