A recent investigation by Nine News has laid bare the hazardous and costly reality facing Australian drivers on our roads. The feature highlights how poorly maintained roadways have become a top frustration for communities, with many motorists sharing terrifying stories of near-misses and thousands of dollars in vehicle damage.
To show the true scope of this national issue, the article pulled directly from Snap Send Solve reporting data to map out exactly how fast the problem is escalating.
Our latest 12-month data snippet to March 2026 featured in the report reveals a massive spike in community action as road conditions worsen:
- Snap Send Solve recorded nearly 95,000 pothole and damaged-road reports across Australia over the 12-month period.
- This represents a significant 31% increase in road-defect reports compared to the previous year.
- Victoria was crowned with the worst roads in the country, leading the pack with 33,115 reports.
- New South Wales: Came in second with 22,291 reports.
- Queensland: Ranked third with 19,441 reports.
- While metro areas see high volume, regional residents are increasingly utilising the app. In the Northern Territory, road-defect reports more than doubled over the year.
As our CEO, Danny Gorog, explained to Nine News, changing conditions are driving the spike:
"More people are driving, the weather conditions are getting more challenging... People are also more sensitive to damage to their cars and are more conscious of the road, so that also contributes to reports becoming more frequent."
The feature highlighted how critical community data is when it comes to getting these hazards on a council's radar. While drivers shared their frustrations regarding wait times for state compensation and repair backlogs, our data shows that local authorities do actively look to address these community-flagged issues.
In fact, the rate of resolved potholes is steadily growing, with around 89 per cent of reported issues being resolved.
Danny emphasised that the best way to help get local roads fixed is to ensure they are reported immediately:
"The squeaky wheel gets the oil... And if the council doesn’t know, they can never be fixed."
Check out the full story here.
