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Update on pothole maintenance

Published: 07/06/2018

Flintshire’s Environment Overview and Scrutiny Committee will receive an update on the methods of repairing and maintaining the highway network following the winter period when they meet on Tuesday 12 June. During the past winter there were four significant periods of severe wintery weather which had a detrimental effect on road surfaces. Pothole repairs are an effective option to immediately deal with defects on the network and they are undertaken to remove the hazard in the most expedient manner. This reduces the risk of damage and injury to third parties. Flintshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Streetscene and Countryside, Councillor Carolyn Thomas, said: “We regularly check the network and note any defects present. It is obviously important to remove safety related defects as quickly as possible but this needs to be balanced against resources. Temporary filling of potholes is the cheapest option to quickly remove defects as the costs involve mainly labour and a small amount of materials used to fill the potholes. “These repairs sometimes fail due to the weather conditions and, while we appreciate that this is frustrating to motorists, it remains the only option to immediately remove the risk in most circumstances. Moreover, more expensive repairs would also fail in the same weather conditions. Once the weather improved the areas were cut and hot filled.” Both Flintshire’s allocation of Welsh Government funding for road maintenance schemes and the Council’s own capital allocation need to provide maximum benefits. Since the winter, all roads have been re-inspected and given a “condition score” which has helped to prepare resurfacing programmes, they have then been independently assessed. This year we have been able to do just over 30 schemes, last year there were 9. They will start in June and continue until approximately November.