Fund to fix our potholes gets an extra £200million

TOWN halls are being given £ 200million to fix their crumbling roads.

The emergency funding from the Department for Transport is enough to help resurface more than 1,000 miles of highway.

It includes £50million specifically for potholes and flood measures.

The money comes from the £6.6billion the Government is providing over the six years to 2021 to improve local roads.

It will also continue to fund research into new surface materials and pothole repair techniques, including the use of 3D printing.

Martin Tett of the Local Government Association welcomed the extra funding but said more money would be needed.

He added: ‘ Potholes are the scourge of all road users and this funding is good news to help councils repair them and pioneer innovative ways to stop them forming in the first place.

‘ While innovation will help councils who are fixing a pothole every 17 seconds, funding challenges remain for local authorities to deal with long-term maintenance of their local roads and address a backlog of road repairs which has risen to nearly £10billion to provide better roads that are safer and more resilient to constant use.’

An annual survey carried out by the Asphalt Industry Alliance found the number of potholes repaired in England and Wales rose by a fifth to 1.86million last year.

This followed a £4million increase to the average council’s highway maintenance budget, bringing to £24.5million the typical amount spent by each town hall.

The alliance warned however that much of this money was going on ‘patch and mend’ work that made potholes likely to form again.

Motoring campaigners have complained that councils often leave dangerous potholes for weeks or even months unrepaired. Many opened up by the ‘Beast from the East’ freezing weather front last year have yet to be filled in.

Damaged shock absorbers, broken suspension springs and distorted wheels are among the most common vehicle problems caused by potholes.

They have also contributed to the death or serious injury of almost 400 cyclists over the past decade.

Edmund King, president of the AA motoring organisation, welcomed the extra cash, saying: ‘Recent increases in funding means that the country is beginning to find its way out of the road rut.

‘This £201million road repair fund and a milder winter presents an

‘Safer and more resilient’

opportunity to begin to catch up on the backlog – but this funding needs to be sustained to make meaningful inroads to improve the condition of our highways.’

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said: ‘Every motorist knows that potholes have been a problem in the last few years. That is why the Government is continuing to step up its funding to local authorities to address this.

‘It is now up to highways authorities to innovate and use new technologies to solve the problem.’

Researchers at University College London have developed an asphalt 3D printer designed to repair cracks and potholes.

The bulk of the emergency fund – £151million – will be used to reward councils that show ‘best practice’ in road repair and maintenance.