Mrs Holmes said she was worried about her safety when she recently travelled behind a council ute carrying an unsecured load of road repair equipment.

Mrs Holmes said she saw the vehicle near the corner of Lords Place and Summer Street and noticed its tail gate was not shut and there were blue metal rocks used to repair roads and tools, including large shovels, sitting in the back of the vehicle.

“Surely people know that they need to cover their loads,” Mrs Holmes said.

“I was concerned when I saw the truck because I was travelling behind it and who knows what could have happened if the truck had hit one of the many potholes in Orange.

“One or both of the shovels, which were just propped up against the blue metal, could have come through the windscreen.”

Mrs Holmes said she expected council workers to be considerate of other people’s safety at all times.

Council spokesman Nick Redmond said when council crews patched potholes they usually used a truck fitted with equipment that funnelled the patching material out of the truck.

He said during January an extra flat-bed truck was used “so that more attention could be given to patching”.

“During this work crews walk behind the truck shovelling material onto the road as they go,” Mr Redmond said.

“If it’s a short distance from one repair area to another the back of the truck is left open.

“When crews have to travel across town or some significant distance they’re encouraged to close off the back of the truck.”

Mr Redmond said anyone who had concerns about the actions of council staff should contact the council’s customer service desk.

tracey.prisk@fairfaxmedia.com.au