The Mercury newsdesk fields a number of recurring gripes and grumbles from readers on community issues, with bugbears such as dog mess, rubbish collections and new housing applications all featuring near the top of the list.

But there can be little doubt what the number one concern is for many of you – potholes.

The state of North Somerset’s roads has long been a matter of concern for swathes of people across the district, who have voiced concerns that the safety of road users is being put at risk and vehicles damaged by poor road surfaces.

Today, however, North Somerset Council is revealing plans for its first ever ‘highways week of action’, which will include a chance for Mercury readers to put questions and concerns direct to council officers.

A spokesman said: “Have you ever wondered why some roads get fixed before others? Would you like to know more about how potholes are repaired?

“Later this month the council is holding its first ever ‘highways week of action’ in a bid to raise awareness about the work it does to maintain and improve roads across the district.

“As part of the week, which will run from June 20-24, we’re giving you the opportunity to ask your road-related questions to officers from the highways department.”

Elfan Ap Rees, the authority’s executive member for highways, said: “We know that the condition of the roads in North Somerset is something that people feel strongly about and investment in roads continues to be high on our agenda.

“Last year we announced that we would invest £40million in our roads over the next five years, to halt deterioration in the condition of our roads and start to improve them.

“We’ve also adopted a ‘whole life’ approach to maintaining our 1,100km road network. This means that we consider the cost of maintaining a road over its lifetime and carry out repairs that offer the best value for money in the long term.

“And we introduced smart gangs who work across the district carrying out high quality, urgent repairs on a ‘fix it right, fix it once’ basis.

“The week of action is about raising awareness around the highways work we carry out and giving residents the chance to find out more.

“Whether it’s about how we decide which road to repair and when, or the different methods we use to fix roads, I invite readers of the Weston Mercury to send in their questions.”

So, if you have a highways question you’d like answered, email it to us at newsdesk@westonmercury.co.uk, or drop it into our office at 32 Waterloo Street in the town centre, before noon on Tuesday.

A selection will be put to Cllr Ap Rees, with the answers appearing in a fortnight’s time on June 23.