Local authorities in Somerset and Devon should be prepared to pool resources to get their road networks back into good order, MP Ian Liddell-Grainger has suggested.
He said the councils were facing a near-insurmountable problem dealing with tens of thousands of potholes which were being reported every year.
And he warned the situation would only deteriorate further as climate change brought more violent weather and heavier rainfall.
Mr Liddell-Grainger, MP for Bridgwater and West Somerset, said he welcomed the Government’s allocation of extra funding for road repairs.
But following a Westminster Hall debate on the state of roads in Devon and Somerset he said it was becoming clear the extra allocation was still insufficient.
“The numbers are huge,” he said. “In 2022 Somerset had 60,000 reported potholes in its roads. In the same year Devon had 34,000. Potholes have become such a feature of the landscape there that people have even devised their own glossary of descriptions of various types.
“Both counties have massive road networks, often with particular problems. Moorland roads are particularity vulnerable to weather extremes while on the Somerset Levels many roads are constantly moving as the underlying peat contracts and expands.
“Both authorities are doing their best to stay on top of a problem which is partly attributable to a history of skimping on road maintenance and repair.
“But there is no prospect of the weather doing anything other than intensify the rate at which road surfaces deteriorate, which is why the councils need to re-examine what they are doing and get ahead of the game.
“New technology is available which can cut the time taken to repair potholes and I would suggest that given the extent of the problem and the certainty that it is going to worsen it is time for the councils to pool their resources, invest in the appropriate equipment and share its use.”
