Pothole-related breakdowns surged between April and June, new figures reveal, following a particularly cold start to the year.
Breakdown rescue company, the RAC, reported a 9 per cent increase in call-outs likely attributable to poor road surfaces during this period compared to the previous year.
This rise is directly linked to the colder conditions experienced in the first three months of the year, which exacerbate road damage.
Severe winter weather contributes to the formation of potholes as water infiltrates existing cracks, then freezes and expands, widening the fissures.
In response, local roads maintenance funding for England has seen a significant boost for the current financial year, reaching nearly £1.6 billion.
This represents a substantial £500 million increase on the previous 12 months. The additional investment is projected to be sufficient to repair approximately seven million potholes across the country.
RAC head of policy Simon Williams said: “Although English councils received a record amount of funding for roads at the start of the new financial year in April, it’s too early to notice the benefit of increased maintenance programmes.
“We can clearly see the cold winter weather at the start of the year has left its mark and caused an unseasonable high in breakdown volumes during a quarter when we’d typically expect a reprieve.
“With second-quarter RAC call-outs 9 per cent higher than the same period last year, we hope English councils have been putting their allocated funding pots to good work in the summer surface dressing season which runs from April to September.
“We hope drivers will soon start to see the results of both the preventative maintenance and resurfacing works they have done.”
Surface dressing is a preservation treatment that creates a new sealed and waterproof surface on roads.
A Local Government Association spokesperson said: “Councils take their responsibilities to maintain and upkeep roads seriously.
“As changing weather patterns impact roads, local government seeks to innovate and find new ways to respond to the issue.
“Greater long term funding certainty, with local roads receiving a fairer share of the £24 billion roads fund over the next five years, will enable councils to invest in more preventative treatments.”
A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “We are ending the pothole plague on Britain’s roads, investing £24 billion to maintain and improve motorways and local roads across the country over the next five years.
“With the average driver forking out nearly £500 to repair serious pothole damage, we know fixing cratered roads is not just about pride in our communities, but the pound in people’s pockets.
“The public deserves to know how their councils are improving their local roads, which is why they have to prove progress or risk losing a quarter of this year’s record funding boost.”
