Potholes every 120 yards on UK roads
Added on Thursday, April 30th, 2009 by Carole Nash Editor | No Comments
Potholes every 120 yards on UK roads
There is a pothole for every 120 yards of Britain’s roads, according to a report released today into the state of road surfaces under local authority control.
A report by the Asphalt Industry Alliance (AIA) claimed that road surfaces in the UK are so poor that motorists are faced with a pothole or crack in the road surface every 120 yards on average, with eight out of ten local authorities in England and Wales admitting that the condition of roads under their control posed a threat to road users’ safety.
English councils filled almost 800,000 potholes on local roads last year, with almost 94,000 being filled in Wales at an average cost of £65 each but despite motorists paying a collective £46bn in motoring related taxes, many councils have complained at a massive funding shortfall.
According to the report, it would cost each of the 155 in England an average of £47m to repair every pothole on the roads that they are responsible for, representing an £8.5bn funding shortfall on the road maintenance spend. Based on those figures, it would take almost 13 years for local authorities to repair every pothole in their area. In Wales, that timeframe is extended to 15.6 years.
The Institute of Advanced Motorists encouraged all drivers and motorcycle riders to remain vigilant and spot damaged areas of road early, giving them enough time to react safely.
“Bikers and cyclists need to look well ahead and change direction early, so they have time to deal with the holes, and their movements don’t cause surprise,” said IAM Chief Examiner Peter Rodger.
The AA president, Edmund King, said 2,000 drivers had contacted the organisation in February because of pothole damage – nearly three times as many as the previous year. He added that the Government invested only 20% of the £46bn it received each year from the road tax back into roads and called for a building programme focused on roads to kick start the economy.
“Now is the time to follow Barack Obama’s example and pump in the cash to restore UK roads, create jobs during the recession and help prevent cash-strapped local authorities haemorrhaging more public money. We need to break out of this vicious cycle of decline on our roads,” said Mr King.
A spokesperson for the Department for Transport said: “The government has more than trebled funding to local authorities for investing in their roads and last year announced new funding to help local authorities better assess the condition of their roads.
“This is in addition to funding provided for routine maintenance.
“We have also given local authorities more powers to minimise the impact of road works that utility companies and others need to carry out.”
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