Earlier this month, the Local Government Association (LGA) said councils had warned that 2017 could be the “tipping point” for potholes.

It warned that by 2019, the overall repair figure across England and Wales could rise to £14bn.

With each local authority fixing an average of 12,000 potholes a year, the LGA also says that the repair time has surged from an estimated 10.9 years in 2006 to 14 years in 2016.

Last week, the Government announced that it was going to hand out £1.2bn in funding for local roads across the 2017/18 financial year.

A portion of that – £2.053 million – has fallen Cumbria’s way and will specifically be used to tackle the pothole problem across the county. The year before, Cumbria was handed £1.444m.

That’s just under £3.5m in two years, but given the size of the county – Cumbria County Council operates the fourth-largest highways authority in England – is it enough to tackle the problem?

The LGA believes it isn’t.

“It’s never going to be enough,” says Keith Little, Cumbria’s cabinet member for highways and transport. “With the size of our road network, we’re not even close to playing catch-up.

“However, we are grateful for the money we’ve received and it’ll be used to carry out repairs wherever they’re needed.”


Keith Little Mr Little says that it is impossible to pinpoint how many potholes there are in Cumbria, nor does one particular area stand out among all others.

“They come and go daily,” he explains. “They’re like the weather. There’s also different situations in different areas but they tend to be in places where there’s an increased water pressure.

“Even though we’re the fourth-largest highways authority, our roads don’t get a great deal of traffic, but the network is made up of a lot of A and B roads. On them we’ve got articulated trucks that weigh between 30 and 40 tonnes. It’s a lot different to the 12 to 15-tonne trucks that were being used 15 to 20 years ago.”

A spokesman for the county council adds that its strategy is to “try and replace or repair damaged road surfaces before potholes can develop”.

He added: “However, recent flooding and severe weather incidents have intensified the rate of deterioration in some parts of the network.

“Consequently, we anticipate an increase in the likelihood of more potholes forming over the next few years as a result of these occurences.

“Accurate and reliable information is a key factor in ensuring the success of this work. The council is increasing the use of enhanced monitoring systems to improve the day-to-day management of the highways network.

“Cumbria relies on having a reliable highways network and ensuring a well-funded and resourced programme of maintenance is key to keeping Cumbrians on the move throughout the year.”

Andrew Burridge, director of Distington-based Tyson Burridge Transport Services, says that potholes are not too much of a concern for his drivers.


Andrew Burridge “It seems like the A66 and the M6 are well maintained,” he says. “There aren’t any real problems there. It tends to be on the B-roads where there are the most potholes, but we don’t tend to use them.”

However, Mr Burridge does not believe that £2m will be enough to address the issue of potholes across Cumbria. “It doesn’t seem like a great deal to spend,” he says. “As I said, the main roads seem to be all right and the roads to Carlisle are as well. If you’re using B-roads it’s more of a problem.”

Responding to the Government’s announcement, Martin Tett, transport spokesman at the LGA, said: “Funding for roads maintenance is desperately needed and the money announced will help councils tackle some of the growing repair backlog and congestion they face on local roads.

“We are pleased the Government has accepted our call for this funding not to be allocated through an uncertain bidding process which we hope will lead to more certainty and less waste across all of government transport spending.

“It is only fair for taxpayers that spending decisions are made by council, who work much closer to, and better understand, the needs of the people and places they serve.

“However, substantially more funding is needed to bring our roads up to scratch. A £12bn current backlog of road repairs would already take councils more than a decade to clear.

“Councils fixed a pothole every 15 seconds again last year despite significant budget reductions leaving them with less to spend on fixing our roads.

“Our roads crisis is only going to get worse unless we address it as a national priority.

“This means the Government providing long-term and consistent funding to invest in the resurfacing projects which our road network desperately needs over the next decade.”