£30m plus to be invested in Dumfries and Galloway pothole-filled roads
25 new workers to be brought in and new pothole machine being considered to fix region's crumbling roads
Last updated 29th Jan 2024
More than 30 million pounds is going to be spent over the next five years to try to repair Dumfries and Galloway's crumbling roads.
The road service is also hoping to bring on board up to 25 new workers this summer to help fix the roads.
The council says it is also considering whether to invest in a new machine which can repair a pothole in around eight minutes.
It's all in an attempt by the new Tory administration to get on top of roads determined to be the worst in Scotland.
A report last year estimated the council's facing a repair bill of more than £217m.
The investment is being welcomed by Conservative MSP Finlay Carson.
Mr Carson said: “After years of desperate underfunding by the SNP-Labour coalition administration at Dumfries and Galloway Council we are now finally and thankfully going to see some badly-needed investment.
“Sadly due to decisions taken by the Labour SNP administration, the bill to bring them closer to an acceptable level will be significantly more than it needed to be.
'The worst roads in Scotland'
“Last March the roads in Dumfries and Galloway were found to be the worst of anywhere in Scotland – not exactly something to be proud of, is it?
“The council reported a repairs backlog of just over £217 million yet nothing was done to seriously address this problem, leaving motorists across the whole of the region facing costly damage repairs when they risked taking their cars out.”
Recruitment for the new workers is to begin this month while the pothole machine has been on the radar of the council for some years.
Trials were recently completed to measure the efficiency and effectiveness of it.
The JCB Pro costs more than £165,000 to buy it outright or the council could enter a lease agreement with company manufacturers.
Speaking at the council’s communities committee on Tuesday, Steven Herriott, the council’s head of roads and infrastructure, said: “It was a short trial, an experiment.
“It was evident that we probably needed two patching crews to follow on behind because of the rate of productivity of the equipment.
“We certainly want to trial that again with the right plant, materials, and resource to follow behind that to follow its productivity.”
A further update is expected to be given the councillors in August.