I have put in formal requests to Hampshire County Council to release figures on how well they do at repairing roads.
It is a common complaint from residents that they report potholes and broken paving but no action is taken. Too often they are left with no option but to sue the council for compensation. Over £75,000 has been paid out for trips and falls in Andover alone. I have even heard councillors advise residents to sue the council for repairs to cars damaged by pot holes.
I requested details of the number of potholes and broken paving stones reported and repaired in the last year together with costs and time taken to carry out repairs. I hope to see money is being spent wisely and effectively to keeps our roads and pavements safe.
I also asked for details on Operation Resilience. The much publicised project to “future-proof” the road network has received over £6 million of government funding. Only 116 miles of roads were resurfaced in 2011/12 with just 77 miles of resurfacing planned for 2012/13. This doesn’t sound a lot to me. Perhaps too much money is being spent on compensating those suffering from the shoddy state of our roads and paths. Surely it’s better to repair them properly in the first place?