Positive news on potholes

THE number of potholes in Dundee has gone down while those permanently fixed at the first time of asking has risen.

Councillors will be told that in 2015/16 12,326 were filled in, 5,088 of these with a first time permanent fix.

Will Dawson, convener of Dundee City Council’s city development committee, said: “Potholes are always a high profile element of the repair work on our roads network.

“Increased investment in more first time permanent repairs and greater concentration on managing the road surface has created this positive trend.”

The report which will be considered by the city development committee on Monday indicates the number of potholes peaked in 2013/14 with a total of 26,638 reported.

In 2015/16, the period covered by t he l atest Roads Maintenance Partnership performance report, pothole numbers were down 46% compared with the peak level set 24 months before. The reduction i s i n part due t o milder, wetter winters but also the benefits of increased investment in the roads network in previous years.

Roads i n Dundee are maintained j ointly by Dundee City Council and Tayside Contracts as the Roads Maintenance Partnership. Its work is monitored and compared with national standards and based on 77 key performance indicators.

In 2015 the partnership was continued for a further three years, with it now due for renewal in March 2018.