Live only a few miles away from where the gentleman sadly lost his life and know exactly where the accident happened. I actually used to race a TT along that stretch of road, unfortunately the course has been disbanded because of the terrible state of it. The main trouble is (and I’m not trying to make excuses for the council for their complete ineptitude in this case) is that the roads around there are built on moss and peat land so because of the weight of traffic it eventually sinks, causing the huge cracks running parallel along the road which unfortunately the gentleman’s front wheel fell into. The state of the roads around where I live are absolutely shocking (just like anywhere else in this country) The trouble is even though the potholes get reported most never get fixed. A cycling friend of mine was talking to a local parish councillor about this and she (unofficially) gave the answer. A lot of the money set aside for pothole repair work has been siphoned off to pay for a new bypass nearby that has gone massively over budget
It may well be a difficult job, however many people are employed to resolve the road issue, and it seems the situation is thus:-
1) They ignore repeated reports from members of the public.
2) They prioritise major roads and rarely examine minor and often rural roads used by cyclists
3) Even though they know there are repeated issues on some roads they don't examine them more regularly but stick to a "it's a rural road and only needs checking every 2 years" narrative.
4) They are not always honest if there is a claim directed their way.
5) The reporting systems the public are forced to use are often not easy to use or fit for purpose
6) There is (to the best of my knowledge) no ombudsman or higher authority available to direct complains to.
Others may be able to add to the above list.