A total of 20,156 potholes have been repaired across the county since April 13, 2021, the latest figures show.
Crews from Shropshire Council and its contractor Kier are using a variety of ways to fill in an average of more than 516 potholes every week – or around 74 every day.
Alongside more traditional methods, the council has some big weapons in its armoury, including a new Texpatch process, which is being used to treat urban roads and provides a longer-lasting, smoother, neater finish compared to traditional pothole repairs, reports the Shropshire Star.
Work is also carried out using the new Multihog road planer which treats potholes and other defects more quickly and effectively, reduces the likelihood of potholes forming in the short-to-medium term and cuts down on the need for road closures.
And four Roadmaster vehicles are being used to carry out jet-patching on rural roads. Roadmasters use compressed air to blow water or dirt out of a pothole that needs repairing and then fill it with hot bitumen and chippings.
Meanwhile the council is also resurfacing 49 stretches of road across Shropshire – measuring 143km – between November 2021 and March 2022 as part of the council’s annual resurfacing programme. It says that it will help to prevent potholes forming in future.
Some 60 stretches of road across Shropshire were treated last year as part of Shropshire Council’s annual surface dressing programme. The work covered 816,000 square metres of road.
Methods used to tackle potholes include the innovative new Texpatch process, which is being used to treat urban roads and provides a longer-lasting, smoother, neater finish compared to traditional pothole repairs.
Work is also carried out using the new Multihog road planer which treats potholes and other defects more quickly and effectively, reduces the likelihood of potholes forming in the short-to-medium term and cuts down on the need for road closures.
And four Roadmaster vehicles (pictured above) are being used to carry out jet-patching on rural roads.
Roadmasters use compressed air to blow water or dirt out of a pothole that needs repairing and then fill it with hot bitumen and chippings.
The repair is compacted by a roller and sealed with a layer of surface dressing – meaning a better quality of repair.
Councillor Dean Carroll, Shropshire Council’s cabinet member for highways, said: “These figures are really encouraging, and provide further evidence of the work we’re carrying out every day to repair the county’s roads, and the progress that we’re making.
“Hitting the 20,000 figure is a significant achievement, but there are still many more to be tackled and that’s what we’ll do.
“I want to say a big thank you to all the staff from Shropshire Council and from our partners Kier and WSP for all their continued hard work – it really is making a difference.”
Peter Woodhead, general manager with Kier, said: “Repairing 20,000 potholes within nine months is an outstanding achievement and, at times, has been challenging. It is testament to the work that our teams and our supply chain carry out.
“They are out there daily in all weathers carrying out repairs across the county’s roads, often with little acknowledgement. It is thanks to their efforts and the innovative repair methods we’re using that allows us to keep the county’s roads moving.”
