£201m for potholes not enough, says LGA
0Local government leaders have ramped up their demands for the next Spending Review with a call for cash to fix potholes.
The Local Government Association (LGA) responded to an announcement of £201m of government funding for pothole repairs with a warning that councils are facing a backlog of road repairs which has risen to nearly £10bn.
It called for the government to invest the equivalent of 2p of existing fuel duty in road repairs.
Recent research by an insurance firm found that Lancashire, made famous by the Beatles for its potholes in ‘A Day in the Life’, has reported almost 50,000 potholes, stretching to 1,989m deep.
Cllr Martin Tett, LGA transport spokesman, said: “Funding challenges remain for local authorities to deal with long term maintenance of their local roads.
“The Government needs to address this in the forthcoming Spending Review.”