Mayor hits back over potholes criticism

THE Mayor of Doncaster has cited a lack of government funding as a reason for delays in pothole repairs, following criticism from an MP.

Ros Jones said that real-terms funding for road maintenance has halved since 2006.

It comes after criticism from Don Valley Conservative MP Nick Fletcher last week.

In a post on social media, Mr Fletcher wrote: “Delay, delay and more delay. It’s something we are all used to from [Mayor Ros Jones and South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard] but why should we accept it? Private businesses would go bust if they acted like them.

“Potholes are meant to be dealt with by the council. Government provide both Doncaster Council and South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority with a lot of money to do their job and provide a good transport network.

“We know though that all of the potholes are not being repaired. Worse still, those that are repaired are not always done properly. I have raised this with the CEO of the council.

“I will continue to press until our roads are put back into the condition they should be.”

An annual survey conducted by the Asphalt Industry Alliance (AIA) found that there are around two million potholes requiring repair across the country, the highest figure in eight years.

In Doncaster, there is a funding gap of around £150m for highways repairs.

Ms Jones said: “Doncaster and councils across the country need more funding for highway maintenance. Potholes are a blight on our roads and increase costs for motorists.

“As a council we want to be able to keep all our highways in good condition, however 14 years of reductions in funding from central government to local road repair budgets have left many local authorities facing their biggest ever annual pothole repair backlog.”