Council admits it would need '˜100s of millions' for Lincolnshire's roads

Lincolnshire County Council has admitted hundreds of millions of pounds of extra funding would need to be ploughed into its coffers to make a '˜massive difference' to plans for repairing roads.
Pothole.Pothole.
Pothole.

The authority has faced mounting criticism for failing to repair potholes - and for the standard of work actually being carried out.

In a statement, the Council’s Highways Department said the recent injection of an extra £12m for road repairs is welcome - but stresses it will take much more money to bring the county’s roads up to the standard it would like.

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The council stresses it is campaigning for a fairer funding deal from central government, but without extra money admits the frustration for residents - and road users - will continue.

The statement says: “Recently, the council agreed to invest a further £12m in highways maintenance for this year.

“While this is a step in the right direction, it is nowhere near the hundreds of millions of pounds we’d need to bring our roads up to the standard we’d like.

“What is really needed is for Lincolnshire to receive fairer funding from the government, which is something we are campaigning for hard.

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“If the council received the average funding for council areas in England, the region would benefit from £116 million of extra funding for services every year – some of which could be used towards highways repairs. That would make a massive difference.”

The statement was issued following reports in the press which highlighted problems facing residents living on rural lanes in East Lindsey.

The council responded: “We realise this is a frustrating situation for residents and would like to reassure them that we are taking action.

“We currently have a significant backlog of potholes to deal with and need to prioritise repairs to busier routes.”