A dedicated pothole repair team will be formed in the north, Highland Council has proposed.
Amid a gloomy budget report outlining the local authority’s plans to plug a £49m gap, is an acknowledgement that the region’s roads sorely need attention.
A total of £14m will be invested in repairing and maintaining the road network in the Highlands.
One of the highlights of that will be the creation of the rapid road repair team.
The team will be mobile and able to target specific problem areas for potholes.
Pothole repair team could be ‘really valuable addition’
At the moment, the team will be a pilot project.
But if it’s a success, it could be rolled out more widely across the region.
Malcolm MacLeod, the council’s executive chief officer for infrastructure, environment and economy, said: “This could be a really valuable addition, it’s the highest quality standards in terms of making permanent repairs.
“The reality is we have had particular issues with pothole repairs. Our area teams will continue, but we felt there was a need to put in something focused on areas where there are collections of degraded roads.
“We can deploy that team across the Highlands over the summer.”
Across the board, the council is proposing a £14m investment into its road network.
That might be a long way from the figure required to bring them all up to scratch.
But the context of the cutbacks required elsewhere shows how much of a priority fixing the roads is.
Challenges lie ahead despite investment
The most recent data from the Scottish Road Maintenance Condition Survey illustrates the scale of the challenge.
Nearly four in 10 Highland roads need to be repaired.
And bringing them all up to scratch would cost an eye-watering £195m.
Mr MacLeod added: “The large estimate shows the scale of the issue with condition of the road network.
“As Highland has the largest network in Scotland and can suffer from severe winter conditions, it requires a significant investment to maintain its network.
“The investment in the team will be a the start of a long-term, cumulative one, as they are sent to various locations to reduce the number of potholes on roads.”
Reports from several area committees across the Highlands hammered home that repairing roads needs to be a priority for the council.
Council leader Raymond Bremner said: “The council has recognised that our roads ned more investment. It is a major challenge and not just for this year.
“But we also have to get it in balance with the other services our communities expect.
“When we are supporting one service, we have to think about where we can find money in other areas.”
The budget paper will be presented at a special meeting of Highland Council on Thursday.
The list of proposals are outlined in full in a 176-page report.
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