Potholes: Bulletin from GCC on 1st February

Gloucestershire County Council is launching its attack on potholes.

The Gloucestershire Road Rescue campaign will officially start today with almost 70 gangs already out on the streets repairing around 500 potholes every single day, compared to 150 a day last year.

The council has increased the number of staff working on potholes by 30% by diverting people from other roles to get the work done as quickly as possible.

The recent freezing weather combined with last year’s heavy winter and the floods of 2007 have really taken their toll on Gloucestershire’s 3,300 miles of road.

Last year we repaired 38,000 potholes compared to 25,000 the previous year and we expect the number to be much, much higher for 2010.

Repairing the damage is a mammoth task – one that will cost up to £5million – and people are asked to be patient and remember to drive carefully while the work is carried out.

Operation Road Rescue will take a three-pronged attack on repairs:

• Worst first: For safety we are fixing the most dangerous potholes first, which may mean that some potholes in a street will be repaired while others are left until later. It is essential that we work like this to ensure the most dangerous defects are repaired as quickly as possible. We’re haven’t forgotten the less serious potholes – they will be repaired as soon as the major work is complete.
• Patching: In some locations road surfaces have been severely damaged with dozens of potholes caused by the severe weather. Our safety inspection and area teams are prioritising areas where we will be carrying out larger patching works to repair these potholes.
• Resurfacing: We’re also in the process of re-prioritising our current resurfacing programme to take into account the damage that has happened due to the recent ice and snow. There is obviously a limited pot of money for major schemes like these so it isn’t possible to resurface every single road in the county.

Cllr Stan Waddington, cabinet member for environment, said: “Repairing the roads is a top priority for Gloucestershire County Council.

“We understand and share people’s frustrations on the state of the roads, and public may be thinking that we’re not doing enough.

“But I want to promise people, our Gloucestershire Highways teams are working as hard as possible filling around 500 potholes every single working day with gangs also working over the weekend.

“We’ve diverted staff from other jobs to ensure the work is done as quickly as possible, but fixing this amount of damage will still take time to complete.

“I would ask everyone to please be patient and remember to drive safely while this essential work is being carried out.”

For more information visit www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/roadrescue.