A large-scale pothole repair project will use £698,000 in infrastructure funding to repair major potholes on carriageways around Salford.
The plan run by Salford City Council will utilise money from remaining provisions distributed between the ten Greater Manchester districts given to the area by the CRSTS (City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement).
Roads with potholes set to be filled include the A580, Old Eccles Road and Bolton Road amongst a list of 66 streets.
A report detailing the decision and locations specified that: “The total amount for Greater Manchester has been established at £15,526,000. This has been distributed across the ten districts in accordance with the existing needs based formula. The pothole action fund is specifically for use on the carriageways.
The council committed to future proofing the roads too as the report said: “Where appropriate and subject to future available funds, the carriageways that have been repaired shall be included in a future surface treatment programme.
It added: “This will seek to seal and protect the surface from deterioration thus further prolonging the in- service life and improve overall network condition.”
This may be more necessary than ever as Salford was ranked 22nd for number of Potholes reported from 2018-2020 with a grand total of 9,329 according to a report by GoCompare.
As well as this they hope to reduce the reliance on contractors stating that “internal delivery shall increase.”
It added: “The future internal delivery shall rely on an expanding workforce and it is the intention of the Operational Manager to employ local people, train them and provide them with the skills to undertake works in the future.”
Potholes are a divisive issue in towns and cities across the UK with Salford being no exception.
In a recent council meeting (18 January 2023) Conservative member Cllr Arnold Saunders said: One thing that is very important in my view for the future prosperity and environment of Salford is well the environment and unfortunately at the moment many streets are not fit for purpose there are too many potholes, the streets are not cleaned as they should be etc.”
In a “tongue in cheek” manner he then went on and said: “I thought at the end of the day Salford cobbles are part of Salford’s heritage and culture as any aficionado of Coronation Street knows. So why not go back to cobbles. We wouldn’t have the problem with potholes.”
Others have expressed their irritation at potholes through Twitter as one user tweeted:
@SalfordCouncil reminder I pay £211 per month council tax but today it costed me extra £130 + VAT for a new tyre because of a large pot hole on the corner of Littleton Road #pothole @salford_mayor can I claim this back? #askinganswers pic.twitter.com/Oo99ZMiguw
— Ńagarjun Reddy (@dnagarjunreddy) January 9, 2023
The entire GoCompare report that originated from a Freedom of Information request in 2020 can be found here.
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