Hull City Council is to spend an extra £11m on highway maintenance in the next year as part of a strategy that has a strong focus on maintaining existing assets.
Labour council leader Councillor Daren Hale said the inclusion of an extra £11m for highways maintenance works within the capital strategy was a statement by his party on its commitment to improve the network for all users, reports the Hull Daily Mail.
“Just as cranes on the skyline signify regeneration and progress, so do roadworks now,” he said.
“Over the last year we have put a huge effort into catching up on the backlog of repairing broken roads and improving networks that are outdated. This is building a future which, as these works begin to see completion, is nearly at hand.
“There is a commonly held view that ‘things just happen’ but that is not true. Repairs and upkeep are planned, budgeted for and carried out on a rolling scheme so that roads, pathways, car parks, schools, street lights, traffic signals, buildings and computer systems are fixed, improvd, updated and replaced when necessary.
“You cannot fix broken roads without rebuilding them and in rebuilding them it is pointless to look to the past.
“We are preparing a road network for this century not the last one and we will be judged on these essential maintenance service projects.”
In its alternative budget proposal, the Liberal Democrat opposition group say they would set aside almost £2m over the coming year to fix what they claims is “Hull’s broken highways network” while shelving spending altogether on the cruise terminal project.
