Cheshire East plans £19 million investment in borough’s roads

Cheshire East Council has approved plans to increase road maintenance spending in the borough by £19 million over the next three years.

The council’s decision is part of an ‘invest to save’ strategy for the 2,700 km of highways managed by the local authority, and seeks to make up for a shortfall in funding from central government that will see Cheshire East Council need to reduce its maintenance bill in coming years.

While funds for road maintenance come from fuel duty and taxes collected by the national government, not from Council Tax, this is being frozen at £13 million for the next three years. Councillors have voted to borrow an additional £19 million over the same period to accelerate repairs: the local authority’s strategic highways team have estimated that £27 million per annum is required to keep roads in their current state.

Cllr Craig Browne, deputy leader of Cheshire East Council and chair of its highways and transport committee, said:

“Underinvestment in the public highways, due to funding cuts by central government coupled with the impact of climate change, is resulting in a significant increase in defects that require reactive repairs to keep our highways safe.

“By targeting additional highways investment of £19m, we will save money on the need for reactive repair of potholes further down the line. This ‘invest to save’ approach will reduce our repairs bill by more than half a million pounds over the next three years.”

Cheshire East Council has joined with other local authorities, including Lincolnshire County Council, to call on government to ensure there is sufficient funding for the road network, particularly in predominantly rural boroughs. Cllr Browne added:

“Rural boroughs are significantly disadvantaged by the government’s existing funding formula. We need fairer highways funding for the residents and road users of Cheshire East – they demand and deserve this and we cannot continue to be overlooked. 

“Without adequate funding, people will see our roads only get worse and the local economy suffer.”