Council Recieves �2.7 Million for Pothole Damage

The bill for claims from motorists who damage wheels, tyres and axles when they drive into Cambridgeshire’s potholes has run into hundreds of thousands of pounds in recent cold winters.

CAMBRIDGESHIRE County Council, which has already filled in 10,000 potholes in the first three months of 2011, has been given �2.7million to carry on remedying frost damage.

Potholes appear in inadequately-maintained highways when water enters faults in the surface and freezes.

The bill for claims from motorists who damage wheels, tyres and axles when they drive into Cambridgeshire’s potholes has run into hundreds of thousands of pounds in recent cold winters.

Last month, the Department for Transport announced that it was making available �100m as an exceptional payment to help with much-needed road repairs following the severe weather at the end of last year. The extra funding was made possible because of savings the Department made earlier in the financial year, the DfT said.

“However, further savings have now been identified and so more money has been made available for this vital programme.”

So the cash available nationally doubled to �200m, of which Cambridgeshire’s share – by far the lowest of any highway authority in Eastern England – is to be �2,681,869. Neighbouring Norfolk gets �7m.

Cambridgeshire’s cabinet member for highways and access, Cllr Mac McGuire, said: “We have already identified extra money in our own budget - an extra �5 million over the next two years - to meet the cost of maintaining and repairing the roads.

“We very much welcome the fact that the Government has recognised the cost of repairing damage caused by the extreme winter weather and we will ensure the extra funding we will receive is spent well and wisely for the benefit of all road users across Cambridgeshire.”

Transport Secretary Philip Hammond added: “Potholes are a menace to all road users, and I want councils to make fixing them a priority.”