GLASGOW residents could not believe their eyes when they spotted new speed limit signs – painted across giant potholes.

Instead of filling in the potholes, a series of white "20mph" signs were painted on top of them.

The residents had appealed to the council for work to be done on the busy road, which is blighted by the craters.

So, when they saw workmen in Ballantay Road, near the junction with Tormusk Road, Castlemilk, they assumed they would repair the road.

But rather than fill the holes, some of which are up to 5in deep, the workers painted the 20mph limit notice instead.

Angry residents slammed the blunder, with one saying, "20's plenty? That's a joke here."

Klayre Middlemas, a 23-year-old hairdresser, said: "Why paint over something that needs to be fixed?

"It's a disgrace. My dad drives and has to drive from the other end of the road now to avoid those holes."

Nurse Kim McKenzie, 40, said: "You can't see the speed limit on the sign because it has caved into the road with the holes.

"Some of the holes are so bad you can stand inside them.

"Everyone around here calls this the road from Hell. It's horrendous."

Sarah Wilson, 63, said: "The road has been like that for years and the council has never fixed it. You see the cars having to drive around it on to the opposite side of the road. To come out and paint over the holes with a sign is a joke."

The Evening Times has campaigned to have potholes fixed across Glasgow and the surrounding areas.

Our Pothole Watch campaign which was launched in 2009 to highlight the deteriorating condition of the city's roads, aims to ensure a fair deal for people in the city.

Since it was started Pothole Watch has found some serious problems.

Drivers all across the city have reported problems to us, as well as details of the money they have had to spend repairing their vehicles through damage caused by potholes.

Glasgow City Council has responded to our campaign by spending millions of pounds on the city's roads.

We revealed on February 9 that the local authority planned to spend a further £12million in the next financial year tackling the problem of crumbling roads, which have been severely affected by freezing winters in recent years, leading to massive potholes.

It means that, in three years, £46m will have been spent on city road repairs.

Glasgow City Council's Land and Environmental Services is responsible for painting speed limit markings.

A council spokeswoman said: "The potholes at the junction of Ballantay Road and Tormusk Road have been previously reported and will be temporarily patched shortly. They are to be included in a more permanent carriage repair planned for that area.

"The road markings are undertaken on behalf of the council by a contractor and clearly it was silly of them to paint a stretch of road that was in need of repair, without consulting us first.

"This is something we will be taking up with the contractor."

rebecca.gray@heraldandtimes.co.uk