Council leaders in Stoke-on-Trent have agreed plans to spend £22.2 million on the roads this year.

The council’s highways capital programme for 2025/26 includes a raft of schemes to upgrade individual roads and bridges, works to improve the city bus network and deal with flooding, and road safety projects near schools.

Also, around £10 million will be set aside for pothole repairs and reactive maintenance on roads across Stoke-on-Trent. Funding for the works will come from various Department for Transport grants, including a £7.7 million Local Transport Grant announced in March, as well as £8 million from the council itself, reports Stoke-On-Trent Live.

While around 15 additional schemes are being reviewed for delivery in 2026/27, future highways funding is currently uncertain due to the government’s forthcoming spending review. Cabinet members at the city council have rubberstamped the highways capital programme.

Cabinet member Finlay Gordon-McCusker said: “I think people are very tired of promises, they want action. They want potholes filled, crossings fixed and roads that don’t wreck their suspension. This year’s highways capital programme is the answer to that. There’s nearly £10 million of new funding from the government for transport and highways in the city. The government do get it and are backing us with additional funding.”

Individual schemes listed in the programme include the Waterloo Road/Cobridge Road junction upgrade, which has been allocated £3 million in in 2025/26, and a £190,000 project at The Square in Meir.

And £1.5 million of LTG funding will be spent on Stoke Road in Shelton, including the signals at the A500 junction, building on previous works delivered as part of the Bus Service Improvement Plan.

Cllr Gordon-McCusker added: “The programme is built on real world priorities – the reports we get from the public, the reports from councillors, and also a lot of data from our highways department using technology to assess the state of the roads and target investment where it’s really needed.

“The programme doesn’t just list projects, it gives us the ability to react to priorities when they arise. Because people shouldn’t have to wait months for paper work to catch up.”

Council leader Jane Ashworth said: “We need to spend what we can on fixing the roads. It’s a source of incredible annoyance to people. If we’re going to be able to look people in the eye and tell them we’re putting money into the things that matter in the city, then it’s this sort of report which we should talk about very loudly.

“The extra funding from government won’t solve the problem, but it’s a step in the right direction.”