New pothole funding to help council be proactive
An extra £1.5m will be given to Swindon Borough Council to fix potholes, but the authority says more money is needed.
The government funding will help the council "ramp-up" its resurfacing jobs according to Cllr Chris Watts the Cabinet Member for Transport.
But despite positivity the total budget of £5.5m remains "short of where we would want to be" according to Mr Watts.
Last year more than 10,000 potholes were repaired in the town.
The additional money for potholes is welcomed but a "fantastic" road surface across the town would require £14m a year for a decade, according to Mr Watts.
The council's overall budget for potholes for 2025-26 stands at £5.5m.
Mr Watts said: "With the money we've got, and hopefully we'll see this money increasing over the life of this parliament, we should be able to get extra crews in.
"We'll have to see what we're allocated in the next few years, it's not going to be easy."
The council says that over the next four months, resurfacing jobs will be brought forward as it moves towards being proactive.
Mr Watts said: "If you resurface you get fewer potholes. That takes the pressure off the pothole team - it all interlinks."
He added: "We're really starting to ramp up using this money for the best use for the town, to keep the roads safe and as usable as possible."
The council has also praised the public for reporting potholes in 2024.
The authority says it relies on local residents to report road defects via its website, and Mr Watts said it was "very grateful" for information supplied by the public.
Five highways Inspectors have to check 522 miles of roads, 646 miles of paths/pavements and 76 miles of cycle paths at least once a year.
A combination of public reports and council checks resulted in 10,230 pothole repairs last year.
The council said all potholes are risk assessed, and those that pose a very high level of safety risk are completed within one working day.
All other pothole repairs are completed within 30 working days, with the majority completed within 10 working days.
Other defects may be programmed for a longer period of repair of up to six weeks.