Potholes and patching on northern Victorian main roads can be seen from space.
Even the Google Earth, low-resolution satellites can pick up the smudges showing potholes and temporary road surface fixes, if you know where to look.
Google Earth is the software developed by Google which uses satellite images to show aerial views.
We hasten to point out that astronauts would be struggling to pick out the worst of the road holes with their naked eyes, but should they be carrying binoculars, they might be in with a chance.
Unfortunately there is no ‘real time’ service that allows us to check on the worst of the holes across the region.
We have to rely on images that are about one year to three years old.
Meanwhile, a creatively minded Nationals MP (and the new Victorian leader of the Nats) Danny O’Brien, has come up with a topic for a new calendar: Potholes for All Seasons.
Recalling the, Men for All Seasons calendar, produced by the AFL, Danny has decided to produce a 2025 calendar with far less glamorous content.
“If you are passing by a pothole, pull over safely and take a photo or two,” Danny said.
“Help us expose the dire state of our roads network by submitting the photos — the worst will play a starring role in the calendar.”
For details on how to help expose potholes in your area, visit: https://www.potholepics.com/
UK farmers protest ‘tractor tax’
Thousands of farmers have protested at Britain's parliament, some driving tractors through central London, to demand the scrapping of an inheritance tax they say will destroy family farms and threaten food production.
The measure, dubbed the ‘tractor tax’ by critics, has drawn an angry backlash from farmers who say the ruling Labour Party does not understand rural communities.
The protesters held placards stating ‘No farmers, no food, no future’ and ‘Starmer the farmer harmer’, in reference to Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Police estimated about 10,000 protesters took part.
Passing farms down through generations is tax-free, but under the new policy, from 2026, 20 per cent tax would be paid on the value of a farm above one million pounds ($A1.9 million). Farmers fear their children would have to sell land to cover the tax bill.
Jeremy Clarkson, the former Top Gear presenter who owns a farm, was among those demonstrating and said his message for the government was: “Please back down”.