Roads in England and Wales at 'breaking point' due to potholes, as the cost to fix spirals

Roads in England and Wales are at "breaking point" due to potholes, with £16.3 billion needed to fix them all, according to a new report.

The Asphalt Industry Alliance's (AIA) Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance (ALARM) survey, published on Tuesday, says that only 6% of respondents said that their local road network improved over the last year.

The number of potholes filled in the last year increased by 40%, proving the perilous state of roads. Less than half (47%) of local roads in England and Wales are classed as "good" while the other 53%, which is more than 107,000 miles, have less that 15 years of structural life remaining.

Last year Cycling Weekly launched a campaign for the government to act on potholes, but it appears that the situation is only getting worse. Cyclists often bear the brunt of poor road surfaces.

Duncan Dollimore, the head of campaigns at Cycling UK, said that it was time for the government to hear the "alarm bells" of a creaking road network.

"The facts and figures set out within ALARM 2024 tell a story which will resonate with road users nationwide," he said. "Many are familiar with the deteriorating condition of their local roads – they’ll have witnessed the recurring cycle of potholes and cracks appearing, being patched up, and re-appearing. 

"The estimated £16.3 billion needed to fix local roads is obviously a huge amount of money. However, it’s important to remember that the government initially planned to spend £27.4 billion on the strategic road network between 2020 and 2025. It’s time the government heard the alarm bells and prioritised the maintenance of local roads. 

"Increased long-term funding for local authorities is also crucial to enable councils to be proactive and properly plan their road maintenance, rather than having to resort to reactive crisis management."

In a country where local authorities have been pushed to bankruptcy, the level of funding needed to fix roads is higher than ever. As one council told the ALARM report: "We have seen a small increase in our highway maintenance budget, but this has been wiped out by the effects of rising inflation. In fact, if anything, we’ve been able to do less with the money than we did a year ago."

The AIA's chairman, Rick Green, said: "Local authorities have a bit more money to spend this year but the impact of rising costs due to inflation means they have actually been able to do less with it.

"Couple this with the effects of the extreme weather we are increasingly facing, and the result is that the rate at which local roads are suffering is accelerating towards breaking point."

A Department for Transport spokesperson told the BBC that its £8.3bn spending pledge was evidence the government was "taking decisive action to resurface roads and fix potholes". However, it is clear that much more is needed in order to fix roads.

If you have experienced an issue with potholes while out cycling, please email in to tell your story: cycling@futurenet.com.