CITY SEALS DEAL FOR JCB POTHOLE FIXERS
Machine sorts out road defects four times faster than usual
STOKE-ON-TRENT has become the first council to strike a deal to use the JCB Potholepro to repair the city’s crumbling roads.
The agreement between Stokeon-trent City Council and the Rocester-based firm means the roads will be fixed four times quicker than standard methods.
The Potholepro – which was unveiled by the digger giant earlier in the year – can repair up to 40 road defects a day. It was trialled across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-trent.
The latest deal means a single pothole in the city can be fixed in under eight minutes, and roughly halves the price of a repair.
However, the cost of the deal has not yet been revealed.
Councillor Dan Jellyman, cabinet member for transport, said: “We know how important road maintenance is to our residents, and that is why we are at the front of the queue for one of these fantastic machines.
“The fact that it’s made by JCB means we are also supporting a local business that employs a lot of people from our city, which is a really nice added bonus.
“We’re currently investing £25 million – one of the biggest ever sustained investments in the city’s highways – with potholes filled and pavements and roads resurfaced on a daily basis.
“This machine is another weapon in our armoury as we make sure our road network is maintained to a high standard for residents, businesses and visitors, which is vital to rebuilding our economy in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
“At a time when every penny counts for local authorities, we’re delighted to have been at the forefront of developing and trialling this new machine.
“We can’t wait to get our hands on it and put it to work on the city’s roads.”
The Potholepro will be delivered to the city council in the next few weeks, before it is marketed to other local authorities across the UK and Ireland.
JCB director Paul Murray said: “We’re absolutely delighted to see Stoke-on-trent City Council become the first authority in the UK to invest in the machine.
“The council has been involved right from the very early stages of its creation.
“The team has worked with us throughout the development process, and also took part in trials last year.
“They’ve clearly seen the benefits and believe in the machine which, as manufacturers, is great news.”
The machine’s development was led by JCB chairman Lord Anthony Bamford.
He added: “Potholes really are the scourge of our nation.
“Our country is quite rightly fixated on this dreadful problem and, as a British manufacturer, I am fixated on finding a solution.”