Poor roads make windscreen woes

Brendan Ray

THE poor condition of storm-affected roads on the Coffs Coast is taking its toll on motorists with reports of broken windscreens on the rise.

Auto glass repairers say customers are mostly pinpointing potholes and delayed, ongoing roadworks as the reason behind the “star chips” and cracks.

Cold winter mornings and frosts only compound the problem.

“It sure has been busy and it is definitely picking up,” window fitter Adam Hardcastle said.

He says Windscreen O'Brien's is averaging up to 100 windscreen repairs a week, after its busiest month of the year in June.

“There has been a lot of stone damage. The storms have broken up the roads so much that drivers are copping a lot of loose stones.”

Novus windscreen fitter, Kevin Cheers, says he's been fully booked on a daily basis, fitting replacement windscreens.

“A lot of customers are complaining about the roads, where they are getting these chips,” he said.

The worst local roads for stone chips are said to be Bray Street, Coramba Road, streets around the Jetty Foreshores and sections of the Pacific Highway where roadworks are occurring.