2,000 potholes repaired in three weeks as frost ravages Shropshire's roads
More than 2,000 potholes have been repaired in just three weeks across Shropshire as weather takes its toll on our roads.
Telford & Wrekin Council said its workers had repaired 919 potholes since mid-January as they try to keep on top of damage caused by frost.
Shropshire Council workers have filled around 1,200 in the same period.
The Telford authority’s Adam Brookes said its workforce had been working flat out over he past couple of months, repairing more than 40 potholes every day.
The cycle of hard frost and gradual thaw has made this winter particularly difficult, coming after a number of years of mild winters.
Mr Brookes said this winter had been a particular problem, adding: “Constant freezing and thawing can mean a small hole can become a pothole and then a bigger pothole. This is why we deal with them as part of our responsive maintenance work, and why we ask the public to report any they spot on our website.”
Yesterday the council tweeted:
Shropshire Council spokesman John Palmer said the authority received reports of about 400 potholes every week. He said Shropshire spends, on average, £1.5 million a year on repairing potholes. The authority has been granted £1.335 million from central government to cover the work over the present financial year.
Today’s figures do not include motorways or trunk roads, which are managed by Highways England.
Just before Christmas Highways England shut the A5 northbound at Nesscliffe, near Shrewsbury, to fill potholes which had appeared.
Last year a Freedom of Information request revealed that 4,610 potholes were reported to Telford & Wrekin Council during 2016. Figures were not available from Shropshire Council.
