£13m spent repairing Shropshire's roads in last year

More than 23,000 projects were carried out on behalf of Shropshire Council and Telford & Wrekin Council between August 1 last year and July 31.

The most repaired road in the county was the B4386 between the junction at Marton and Lower Hill Farm in south Shropshire, which had 21 separate roadworks in the space of the year.

The figures, released under the Freedom of Information Act, include work on A road, B roads and unclassified routes, but not motorways or trunk rods – such as the A5 and A49 – that are the responsibility of Highways England.

Contractors carried out 18,506 jobs on more than 2,000 roads in the Shropshire Council area, which includes road markings and replacing street signs but not street light repairs.

Officials at Shirehall were not able to put a cost on roadworks alone, but said the authority had spent £13.134 million on highways during the 2014/15 financial year.

In Telford & Wrekin there were 4,526 repairs carried out on 108 roads, not including emergency repairs. Telford & Wrekin Council spent £1,054,000 solely on road repairs during the period, and council chiefs today said more than £3 million was spent on highways issues every year.

Shropshire Council highways chief Steve Brown said: "The condition of Shropshire's roads is average considering the network as a whole. But there are concerns about the condition of some minor roads, which form 3,319km or 65 per cent of the road network.

"These minor roads, typically consisting of little pavement structure, are at most risk of rapid deterioration due to the ingress of water and overloading.

"Investment in these roads is more challenging to justify with other demands on more popular routes, however these roads remain crucial links for our communities."