Roads minister disputes council's repair estimates

In his letter, Medway Council's leader said the estimated £50m bill to bring roads "up to standard" included repairing around 2,000 potholes in the area

A row has broken out between a Kent council and a government minister over estimated costs for road repairs.

Medway Council shared a copy of a letter it sent to the government saying the quotes it had received to bring the area's roads "up to standard" - including repairing around 2,000 potholes - had reached £50m.

Roads minister Guy Opperman has criticised the authority for suggesting it was budgeting for £25k to repair each pothole.

Medway Council said its letter was clear in talking about the overall state of roads and not just potholes.

The council's letter says roads in Medway are "not at a level which is acceptable"

In February the unitary authority asked the government for "exceptional financial support" to avoid effective bankruptcy.

In his letter, Medway Council leader Vince Maple wrote that a "reduction of local government funding" had meant there had been a reduction in the state of roads in Medway and that potholes were "compromising road safety".

In response, Mr Opperman said: "I trust it is not costing you £25,000 to fill each pothole? Perhaps that is part of the problem."

The minister suggested the authority "did not welcome" extra funding provided as a result of the scrapping of the second phase of HS2, and criticised the council for allegedly publishing the letter before sending it.

Mr Maple told the BBC: "It was incredibly surprising to see the roads minister reply in the way that he did, and pretty disrespectful, actually, to the people of Medway.

"The reason for the reference to potholes is because that is the main issue that people are raising.

"The letter is clear that we’re talking about road conditions and not just potholes."

Roads minister Guy Opperman's letter to Medway Council suggested it was budgeting £25k per pothole repair

The Department for Transport said it had allocated £3.5m to Medway Council in 2024/25 for its road network, including an additional £400,000 from reallocated HS2 funding.

However, the unitary authority dispute this claim.

Mr Maple said: “The Minister for Roads and Local Transport has put in black and white that Medway has been allocated an additional £12million to be used towards addressing the condition of the roads.

"Medway’s pocket has only seen a fraction of this with just £802,000 additional funding allocated for two years.

"This year’s £401,000 is only covering 11 roads. It is totally unfair for our residents and motorists."

A DfT spokesperson said it was "up to the respective local highway authority to maintain its highway networks".

Mr Maple said the council was prepared to meet the minister "to explain why we feel the that there is an urgent need for this investment".

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