POTHOLE problems blighting motorists in South Derbyshire are set to be solved with part of a £824,000 boost over two months.
From next week, external contractors are being brought in by Derbyshire County Council to help clear the backlog of urgent repairs caused by flooding and winter weather.
As well as appointing contractors, the county council is hiring a JetPatcher – a specialist machine which uses a high velocity air stream to clear existing holes of any debris and water as well as laying and compacting new asphalt.
The cash boost comes after complaints were made about the road surface at the junction of Coronation Street and Darklands Road, Swadlincote, described by councillors as a ploughed field.
Currently, motorists travelling up Coronation Street, Swadlincote, to Darklands Road, are forced to slowly navigate their vehicles through a large group to potholes which have slowly eaten away at the road surface.
Councillor Paul Dunn, who represents Midway on South Derbyshire District Council, initially raised the problem at Swadlincote Area Forum, describing the junction as more of a ‘ploughed field’
He added: “Coronation Street. It is not worthy of its name. There are hundreds of cars that use that road.”
Councillor Simon Spencer, the county council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “The number of potholes reported by the public and noted on routine inspections continues to rise.
“People tell us good quality roads are important to them and we’ve already increased the number of our own staff out there to reduce the backlog of repairs. “But it’s clear we need to take extra action to improve the quality of our roads.”
The £824,000 shot-in-the arm is expected to fund extra repairs for two months.
A further £4 million has already been made available by the Government to target winter damage on Derbyshire’s roads during the next two years.
The news comes after highways chiefs at Staffordshire County Council revealed it is ploughing half a million pounds into repairing the potholes which continue to plague Burton motorists.
It is making the £500,000 investment after revealing it had seen a 50 per cent increase in reports of potholes.
The money will be in addition to the £43.5 million it spends on repairing roads across the county each year.
