Coventry City Council spend £3million to repair city's roads

[dutchman]

Almost 300 roads in Coventry are set to be repaired by the end of next year - at the cost of more than £3m.



The seven figure sum will be spent on tackling a backlog of road repairs and fixing streets with a pothole problem across the city.

About 180 roads will be resurfaced while the remaining 120 roads will be patched up.

The funding comes from a total of £5million from the West Midlands Local Transport Plan.

A further £6million will be spent to clear a backlog of repairs to pavements and other footways.

The city council says it has ploughed more than £15million into a road resurfacing programme since 2010 which has been spent on fixing roads including Deedmore Road, Foleshill Road, and Holyhead Road.

But according to a survey from Asphalt Industry Alliance it could take seven years and an average of £4.4million to clear a backlog in road repairs for each authority in the West Midlands.

The AIA is calling for the government to provide more funds for highways departments and get their roads back into a reasonable condition.

Alan Mackenzie, chairman of the AIA, said: “For the third year in a row, respondents to the survey have reported significant amounts needed to be spent on repairing winter damage.

“The number of complaints received from the public increased by 10 per cent over the past year, amounting to an average of over 12,500 received by each authority in England.”

In a council report, transport policy manager Nigel Mills stated: “There is an emphasis on making the best use of the existing infrastructure rather than creating new.

“Consequently a significant maintenance programme will focus on ensuring the worst affected roads and pavements across the city are properly repaired and preventative maintenance is carried out.

“As a result of permanent repairs undertaken in 2011 the deterioration of the road network has reduced significantly. The programme of works is aimed at continuing the significant improvement to the carriageway network.”

The city council has also made bids for more than £5million to the Local Transport Fund to speed up the repairs.

Mr Mills added: “We will seek to reduce ongoing revenue expenditure through the removal of unnecessary infrastructure.

“This reflects the reduction of resources available and the need, now more than ever to ensure that each scheme offers value for money and is delivered as efficiently as possible.”