Melton drivers promised fewer potholes with new £5million council funding

Melton motorists will soon have fewer potholes to avoid after plans were announced to spend £5million fixing roads across Leicestershire.
Potholes have been a major issue across Leicestershire EMN-180515-102334001Potholes have been a major issue across Leicestershire EMN-180515-102334001
Potholes have been a major issue across Leicestershire EMN-180515-102334001

The county council aims to use the money to prevent more potholes and to ramp up its long-lasting resurfacing programme to stop defects occurring in the first place.

County Hall decided to act because there are now 1,760 outstanding patching jobs needed to address potholes and other defects across Leicestershire and these are around 20 new cases each week.

The council blames the harsh winter for many of the problems, with the AA reporting last week that UK drivers and insurers were losing £1million a week repairing vehicles damaged by driving over potholes.

Councillor Blake Pain, cabinet member for environment and transport, said: “Although our roads are still some of the best around, our spend on maintenance is set to decrease by £7million by 2020 following national funding reductions.

“The harsh winter has taken its toll – in January, we received three times as many calls about potholes compared to January 2017. And we recognise the cost to business and inconvenience to people who use our roads.

“This extra money means we can prevent more potholes occurring. And importantly, it enables us to resurface and seal many more miles of road. Not only does this prolong their life, it improves journeys for residents and reduces the need for roadworks.”

Councillor Byron Rhodes, cabinet member for resources, said: “This extra investment in front line services clearly highlights the benefits of the county council’s asset investment programme.”