A pothole repair machine will continue to be used to repair Lincolnshire roads after its trial showed it to be a success. However, some councillors questioned why the trial could not have been done earlier and argue the contractor has been delivering a ‘substandard service’ in the meantime.
The JCB Pothole Pro cuts out sections of road around potholes for neater repairs and aims to work four times quicker than traditional methods, according to its manufacturer, says West Bridgford Wire.
In September last year Lincolnshire County Council (LCC) decided to trial the machine for a full year and focused on its ability to repair clusters of potholes and larger patching work (repairing larger sections of roads), as opposed to filling in individual potholes.
Officials decided to draw the trial to a close eight months on – and said that while the machine is slightly more expensive than conventional methods, it has been very effective at fixing pothole clusters and repairing larger sections of roads.
The council’s highways contractor, Balfour Beatty, said it will keep the machine ‘on contract’ – meaning it can continue to use it to carry out pothole repairs across the county. Earlier this week Tom Gifford, client and contract manager at LCC, said: “We’ve had a successful trial. It has operated very well. The level of planning that is required to go into making sure the machine works at its best, I hope, comes through as part of the paper.
“Our provider, Balfour Beatty, has been happy with its operation and it has shown to be a very effective delivery mechanism, in comparison to the standard piece of kit that we’ve been using to deliver this piece of work.
“The machine provides good quality, and the health and safety benefits to the operatives have been significant – and not necessarily what is being measured as part of the trial – but have been demonstrable in the reduction of risk to staff.”
Councillor Thomas Sneath said:
“It is encouraging to see the innovation being trialled properly – with a focus on productivity, safety and value for money, rather than just a novelty factor. The fact that the contractor has chosen to retain the machine as part of its normal delivery suggests that the previous trial was inept.
“But following a more mature trial, they are confident of its effectiveness, and I see that this is a positive example of allowing flexibility within the contract to deliver better outcomes for our residents.”
Council officials had previously trialled a Pothole Pro machine in 2021 for just over a month, but it was deemed to be too expensive and did not offer value for money in comparison to the authority’s standard machinery.
Councillor Richard Wright questioned why the trial had delivered different results this time compared to the original trial.
He said: “If we have a contract with anybody, we expect them to deliver the best on the contract, so something does not quite stack up.”
(Picture: JCB)
