£10 million extra allocated to fix Lincolnshire's potholes
Leading Lincolnshire councillors have approved a plan to put £10 million more into fixing the county's crumbling roads.
At today's county council executive meeting, members outlined a plan to do more on a matter that was described as the 'number one issue' during May's elections.
Leader Martin Hill said: "We got a very clear message from voters and the public that they see roads maintenance as a high priority."
Members agreed to reduce the amount they were due to transfer into the authority's 'financial volatility reserves' by £10 million - and instead move this into a development fund that is ring fenced for highways maintenance initiatives.
The council has previously revealed that the Government had cut its maintenance cash by £12.3 million - about 25%.
Coun Richard Davies, executive member for highways, told today's meeting that this had been a 'real kick in the teeth', adding: "It will take me some time to forgive them for doing that."
Coun Davies said that the 'harsh reality' was that the condition of the roads was a financial issue.
He believes the county's rural roads in particular are in need of care and attention.
He said: "We need to be thinking about rural and small classification roads. We have, over the years, tended to prioritise A roads.
"Some of the small classifications - B, C and U, are really in quite a bad state."
He added that road resurfacing schemes are need, and said: "We all know them in our areas - the roads that need attention. It's more than just a case of going and filling in potholes."
The £10 million road funding proposal will now need to be approved by the full council at a meeting in September.
What do you think? Which roads need most attention in our area? Post your suggestions in the comments below.