| A programme of pothole repairs and road resurfacing projects has been announced for the region – with £1.2 billion of reallocated HS2 funding being used to foot the North West bill.
Last November, the government announced it would be investing £8.3 billion to tackle badly-surfaced roads across England. The North West will receive its share from the Northern leg of HS2, over an 11-year period. Councils in the North West have already been paid more than £19 million to get on with the work and deliver improvements, with another £19 million following in this financial year. As a condition of this funding, and to make sure money is being spent on pothole repairs, local authorities have been required to publish a two year plan detailing exactly which local roads will benefit. Today, the Department for Transport has revealed the local authorities receiving funding across the North West which have responded to the Department’s survey request to set out their plans, meaning local people can now check their local council’s websites and scrutinise their plans for themselves. The reporting requirements have highlighted how emerging techniques and equipment are being used to tackle potholes in the North West, such as in Lancashire, where councils are using materials made of recycled plastics and so-called bio-binders to fill potholes in a low-carbon way. The Department has already been clear with those local authorities that have failed to publish reports that they could see the withdrawal of future funding to resurface roads. From Carlisle to Crewe, people can check their authority websites and see which roads are planned to be improved, and routes where work has already taken place, such as the A50 at Knutsford. Transport secretary Mark Harper said: “Alongside this unprecedented funding, which is already being used to improve local roads, we’re making sure residents can hold their local authority to account and see for themselves how the investment will be spent to improve local roads for years to come.” Having submitted their first reports last month, councils in the North West will now also be required to submit quarterly reports from June, announcing work which has taken place over three months, meaning residents will now regularly be able to scrutinise the progress their local authority is doing to tackle potholes. |
| Editorial credit: Patrick Shutterstock / Shutterstock.com |
Local authorities have reported which roads will be repaired with reallocated HS2 funding
