Amber rating for road maintenance in Central Beds as funding could be scaled back
A new traffic light rating system published by the government enables drivers across England “to see how well their local highways authority is tackling the pothole plague”, said the DfT.
“These new ratings are the first of their kind and grade 154 highways authorities as red, amber or green. This is based on current road conditions and how effectively councils are spending a record £7.3bn funding to fix potholes and invest in long-term measures to maintain roads.”
The overall rating for Central Bedfordshire Council is amber, with Luton Borough Council in the same category, while Bedford Borough Council was graded red. Aspects of these gradings can be higher.
Central Bedfordshire was rated amber on the condition and best practice scorecards, but green for the spend scorecard.
“This comes after the government backed highways authorities with a record multi-year investment to improve the condition of their roads, after years of councils calling for more certainty around future finance availability.
“The aim is to allow local authorities to repair potholes effectively and move away from expensive, short-term repairs by investing in long-term preventative measures. Some motorists paid more than £1,000 last year for damage to their vehicle, after hitting potholes.”
Independent Aspley and Woburn councillor John Baker said: “I’m delighted the government has recognised CBC’s efforts to managing its capital expenditure well, awarding us a green rating.
“We’ve 1,400km of roads to look after, along with 1,200km of footways, more than 600 bridges, around 25,000 streetlights, and thousands of gullies and culverts.
“This highways budget has to be carefully managed to maintain all of these assets. We’ll look to keep improving in the other categories. But with the government’s damaging £17m of cuts to this council’s funding, we’re stretched to what extra money can be spent on top of the DfT grant.
“We’ve spent heavily on road improvements in previous years,” added executive member for finance and highways councillor Baker. “However, we’ll have to scale back some of that expenditure in light of the cut to our funding.”
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander explained: “For too long drivers have paid the price because our roads were left to deteriorate.
“I’ve heard time and again their frustration on footing the bill because they hit a pothole, money they should never have to spend.
“For the first time, we’re making sure the public can see how well councils are doing in delivering the improvements they want in their local area.
“This government’s record investment will save drivers money on repairs, make roads safer and help restore pride in our communities.”
The red, amber and green ratings are based on three key areas, the condition of local roads, how much highways authorities are spending on road repairs and whether they follow best practice in maintaining highways, added the DfT.
Amber ranked authorities, including CBC, showed some of these qualities with room for improvement in individual areas.