18,000 potholes filled in five months

Highways crews in Staffordshire have filled nearly 18,000 potholes in the five months from May until October, new figures have revealed.

Since May, crews have been working hard across the county to fix as many defects as possible and take advantage of the drier weather over the summer.

Added to this, nearly 50,000 gullies have been checked to ensure they are ready for wetter and stormier weather in the autumn and winter.

In July, the county council took delivery of a second JCB Pothole Pro, to help speed up repairs and make an impact on Staffordshire’s roads.

Patrick Allen, Staffordshire County Council’s Cabinet Support Member for Highways North said:

“Our crews made the most the good weather we saw over the summer to fix as many defects as possible. This work will set us up well for the winter, with the harsher weather inevitably taking a toll on our roads.

“With the extra Pothole Pro we now have, this will allow us to complete our repairs quickly and efficiently. Although our crews are now turning towards winter gritting operations, they will still be out and about repairing defects throughout

the autumn and winter.”

The county council recently released its Roadmap to a Better Highways Network, a major new plan to fix more roads, protect vital bridges, and cut the repair backlog, all while delivering better value for money and pushing for fairer funding from government.

Patrick continued:

“We’re making steady progress with fixing defects, but we want to do more to stop the cycle of decline in our highways. This includes fixing roads properly, using local teams and new technology to deliver in a smarter way, improving efficiency so more of our budget goes into repairs, and lobbying government for fairer funding and longer-term investment.  

“We’re committed to doing things differently, and we will continue to turn the tide so our residents can see and feel the difference on our roads. This is just the start.”

   Pic: Gulley Cleaning.

A copy of the new roadmap can be read here.