With the Chancellor’s Spending Review scheduled for the end of November the Road Surface Treatments Association’s chief executive Howard Robinson makes the case for more investment in road maintenance.

 

“All too often good road maintenance is viewed as desirable rather than essential. This perception is misplaced and must change.

 

“Failure to appreciate the true socio-economic worth of a well maintained road network is underlined by the fact that governments have, for many decades, failed to provide adequate funding for road maintenance. Local authorities, faced with dwindling resources, are often forced to raid the road maintenance budget to fund other services.

 

“Unfortunately road maintenance is not glamorous. It does not have the news impact of expanding the trunk road network or investing in high speed rail. Nevertheless it is essential. Roads are an asset that promote economic viability and social wellbeing. 

 

“Maintenance is also crucial to the safety of the road network. Poorly maintained potholed roads and those that have lost their skid resistance are a hazard.

 

“There are financial costs to road users too. Vehicles using deteriorating roads consume more fuel and may need more repairs. There is also a compensation cost. Last year, according to the Local Government Association, local authorities paid over £53M in compensation to drivers for vehicular damage resulting from potholes. This is money that authorities can ill afford.

 

“Above all there is the financial good sense of investing in programmes of planned, cost effective and long term preventative maintenance rather than expensive emergency short term patch and mend.

 

“It costs only £2m² to surface dress and maintain a road but costs an average £57m² to repair potholes. 

 

“The negative impact of decades of under investment in road maintenance has been confirmed by the latest Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance survey. It found that despite additional Government emergency pothole repair funding and a significant 33% increase in the number of potholes being repaired during 2014 there still remains a black hole of £12.16Bn required to bring the local road network up to an adequate standard.

 

“The survey also found that 2.7M potholes were filled and repaired last year. However this is expensive reactive repair rather than cost effective preventative maintenance that would stop the potholes forming in the first place.

 

“Local highway departments acknowledge the benefits of structured road maintenance programmes as part of their long term asset management plans. Unfortunately they do not have the financial certainty to allow them to plan and implement such programmes.

 

“There is some optimism that Government is realising the need for assured long term road maintenance funding with £6Bn pledged between 2015 and 2021. This may sound like a significant sum. But given the poor state of the road network and the growing traffic demands placed upon it the funding will only be enough for local authorities to continue to play catch up and do nothing to address the £12Bn backlog of road repairs.

 

“The case for funding a well maintained road network is strong. Government must recognise the social and economic benefits and work with local authorities to develop long term funding mechanisms that enable the implementation of programmes of planned maintenance.”

 

♦ This piece has been prepared for TP Weekly News on behalf of the Road Surface Treatments Association.