Investment in East Sussex Council’s road patching programme will be doubled after a £1 million boost was agreed by council leaders.
The extra money is on top of the £1 million already committed for patching this year to repair sections of damaged road across East Sussex and annual spending of £2.5 million for pothole repairs.
There will now be 400 patching upgrades over the next 12 months, with priority for the most in need, especially on A and B roads.
Cllr Claire Dowling, lead member for transport and environment, said: “To bring all our 2,000 miles of roads up to perfect condition would require more than £300 million – but this added investment will help improve some of the roads most in need of repair.
“We know how vital the road network is to our county – for people living or working here, travelling to school or training, delivering public services and caring for our vulnerable residents, which is why we have agreed this additional investment, even at a time when we are facing a significant shortfall in future years.”
Increasingly wet winters have taken a toll on East Sussex roads, as they have across the country, resulting in a significant increase in the number of potholes forming. The council’s new highways contractor has increased the number of repair gangs over the last 12 months in a bid to deal with the increase, said the council.
The new spending brings the council’s additional investment in roads to £22.5 million over the past three years, as an essential part of efforts to protect roads wherever possible. Patching work will be followed next summer by a significant programme of dressing many roads with new surfaces next summer. Drainage works are continuing to protect roads from excess water.
The additional funding for patching, which will help better protect roads from future weather damage comes from the council’s capital budget for one-off projects so does not affect annual spending on other services. It brings the total investment in highways over the past three years to £85 million.
Cllr Dowling said: “We spend far more on our roads than we receive from Government because we know how important the network is for connectivity and the economy.
“We don’t have a network of motorways and dual carriageways that benefit from significant national investment, and we are working hard to draw the Government’s attention to counties like ours that have a huge number of unclassified roads to maintain.”
PIC-East Sussex Council
