More miles of Hampshire’s roads will be strengthened and repaired this summer, following a £15 million investment in highway maintenance by the County Council.
The funding will be used for planned maintenance and reactive repairs during the summer period to address the significant deterioration over the winter as a result of the adverse weather the county experienced. Work includes:
• 35 resurfacing schemes to repair the roads most in need: in total this year, 113 resurfacing schemes are expected to be completed totalling nearly 40 miles.
• Additional surface treatment locations – in total this year, 139 schemes are expected to be completed totalling over 129 miles. Since April, 102 locations have been completed, with the funding allowing for more sites to be included.
• Multiple additional gangs undertaking patching treatments to replace damaged sections of road – these are localised repairs used to fix specific defects such as potholes, cracking, rutting, or surface failure without resurfacing the entire road. It comes after 90,000 potholes and road defects were repaired over the last financial year.
Councillor Steve Forster, Hampshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Highways and Passenger Transport, said:
“Using the warmer, drier months to step up road repairs is a key priority, helping us make our roads more durable and resilient. That’s why we are investing £15 million to deliver this essential maintenance work.
“Our highways teams are working day and night to strengthen and prolong the life of Hampshire’s roads. In the 12 months since April 2025, we have completed around 90,000 pothole and road defect repairs, following an increase in reports over the winter months. Alongside this work, we will continue to deliver our annual resurfacing programme and respond to issues as they arise. Despite these challenges, I am confident we are doing everything possible with the resources currently available to us.”
He added: “Years of underinvestment in national highways funding, combined with rising costs, inflation, heavier vehicles and more extreme weather, are placing increasing pressure on road networks across the country. As such, I have recently written to Government to renew our call for sufficient, long-term investment in local highways. While we fully support the move towards preventative maintenance, funding remains well below what is needed to address the scale of the challenge. As a result, councils continue to be trapped in a cycle of reactive repairs while road conditions deteriorate.
“Hampshire’s highways maintenance backlog is now estimated at more than £550 million and has grown over the past two years as a result of insufficient national funding. Without a step change in investment, it will not be possible to provide the resilient, high-quality road network that residents and businesses rightly expect.”
(Picture: Mapillary)
