Green MSP John Finnie says there is a danger of rewarding failure by providing funding to those councils which have not maintained roads properly.

Cllr Steven Heddle again calls for a general increase to local authority funding.

Mr Finnie wonders how this would help road maintenance specifically if the cash is not ring-fenced.

The COSLA representatives replies councils would be accountable to the electorate, who would be rightfully angry if they did not see improvements.

Image source, bbc

SNP MSP Richard Lyle asks if the witnesses want ring-fencing returned for road maintenance.

Mr Heddle says he is absolutely not advocating the return of ring-fencing.

Committee convener Edward Mountain says he is struggling to understand how much cash is actually going to road maintenance.

"Is there money set aside for road repairs and is there money being spent on road repairs?" he asks.

Mr Heddle explains roads have to compete with other services in terms of budget allocation and councils have to carve the cash up in terms of local priorities.

Stewart Turner from the Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland (SCOTS) says the figure he has on the road maintenance backlog is £1.8bn.

Funding in the last 5/6 years has decreased and we are really papering over cracks at this point, he says.

Whatever the precise figure for the backlog, it is huge he adds.

Donald Morrison from Transport Scotland explains different figures come from the fact local and trunk roads are calculated separately.

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Mr Rumbles says in order to call for more cash for road maintenance from the Scottish government, we need accurate figures.

The Lib Dem MSP adds we need to know the nominal amount of money that the Scottish government allocates to local authorities and how they spend it.

Donald Morrison from Transport Scotland says he has figures for trunk roads, but not local roads.

Cllr Heddle pledges to try and get those figures for the committee.

He calls for increased funding for councils and more flexibility in how to spend it.

Lib Dem MSP Mike Rumbles asks what cash is allocated to local authorities for road maintenance and whether it is being spent on roads.

Cllr Steven Heddle says spending on roads has fallen by 26% in the last five years, while overall funding for councils has dropped.

The allocation given to councils for roads is a notional one as it is not ring-fenced, he explains.

The decline in the condition of roads is not due to a lack of investment from local authorities in roads, but a lack of investment from the Scottish government into local authorities he insists.

Image source, bbc

The second evidence session on road maintenance begins...........

• Stewart Turner from the Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland, external
• Ewan Wallace from the Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland, external
• Councillor Steven Heddle from COSLA, external
• Robert Nicol from COSLA, external
• Donald Morrison from Transport Scotland, external
• Hugh Gillies from Transport Scotland, external

Image source, bbc

Mr Robertson says every person working on a road should receive disability awareness training and access training.

The Mobility and Access Committee in Scotland spokesperson says he has given talks to roadwork companies but no-one from a utility company has come forward.

He suspects it is because they do not want training.

SNP MSP Maureen Watt asks about training for hauliers for iving on rural roads.

Alistair Speedie confirms there is lots of training, especially around ensuring hauliers understand the roads are for a variety of users including cyclists and horses.

Everybody must respect other road users, he says.

Alistair Speedie explains in the 1990s the roads accord existed, an agreement between the Forestry Commission and local authorities.

This ensured ring-fenced funding for forestry roads but disappeared at the turn of the millennium, he says.

David Sulman tells the committee about efforts within the haulier sector to be "kinder to the roads", including changes to tire technology and agreed routes.

Adaptations cost about £12,000 per vehicle he estimates, though he says this is worth it in terms of road protection and the comfort of drivers.

Image source, Getty Images

The boss of a Scottish civil engineering firm has become the guardian angel of his council's roads by filling in potholes for free.

Mark Armstrong realised he could help cash-strapped Highland Council by using leftover asphalt from road laying jobs his staff had completed elsewhere.

Now he fills in potholes in his local area, paying his workers for the extra time required.

He claims it benefits his business by saving him money in vehicle repairs.

Mr Armstrong, who owns MA Ventures and employs 15 people in Alness, Easter Ross, told the BBC Scotland News website: "I had a couple of incidents with potholes which caused significant damage to our vehicles.

Read more here.

Image source, Twitter/Cycle UK

Keith Irving from Cycling Scotland says patching rather than whole carriageway repair leads to a more dangerous route.

Mr Irving explains the side of the road where people have to cycle is often the area of the road in worst repair.

There are strong reasons for segregation of cycle routes to keep everyone safe, he adds.

SNP MSP Emma Harper highlights the number of accidents involving cyclists that do not involve a collision with another vehicle, suggesting it is therefore an issue of road condition.

Keith Irving from Cycling Scotland says there are particular problem areas where road maintenance can be really serious, such as around junctions.

Having to swerve to avoid potholes and surface defects going downhill can increase risk, he explains.

Twice as many people are admitted to hospital having crashed off their bike than is recorded by Police Scotland he adds.

Tory MSP Finlay Carson raises the issue of elderly people's concerns about the condition of pavements.

Mr Carson cites a 20% decrease in foot maintenance funding.

Mr Robertson says the term road includes the pavements and points out it is difficult enough to live as a disabled person.

For elderly disabled people, if their confidence is shaken, they don't come out with a devastating impact on them, he explains, highlighting the huge knock on effect this has on the health and social care budget.

The Mobility and Access Committee in Scotland spokesperson says: "We have to get the quality right."

Keith Robertson calls for more enforcement on utility companies and developers building the infrastructure.

He says the quality must be inspected, again pointing to issues with drop kerbs being too high and roads being built with the cheapest materials.

Image source, Kate Uzzell

Martyn Uzzell was on the latest leg of a charity bike ride when he hit a pothole and was thrown into the path of a car.

He died instantly.

He was cycling from Land's End to John O'Groats with his brother-in-law and a friend - all three of them experienced cyclists.

Since his death in 2011, his widow Kate has been campaigning for better road inspections.

Read more here.

Image source, bbc

Martin Reid from the Road Haulage Association says he would be very surprised if civil engineers had not expressed a preference for preventative maintenance.

Mr Reid warns against going for the lowest price when choosing companies to carry out road maintenance.

Mr Speedie points out local authorities have no control over utilities contractors.

The Timber Transport Forum explains road authorities do not dig up their own roads, its utility firms that do and that is where most potholes start out.

"Road maintenance budgets are always the bridesmaids," says Alistair Speedie.

He adds: "Our infrastructure looks tired."

Mr Speedie suggests there should be another model for funding to allow local authorities to plan long-term.

He argues every council does its best at maintaining the roads and spends what it has.

Keith Robertson agrees ring-fenced budgets work and collaboration does not remove power from councils.

Image source, bbc

Mr McCall says he can see no argument against more collaboration and agrees there should be some form of common approach across Scotland in terms of path and cycle way maintenance.

Timber Transport Forum spokesperson David Sulman agrees there should be more collaboration but warns against centralisation.

Mr Sulman cites the importance of local knowledge.

Roads are often viewed as a Cinderella in terms of cash from the block grant, fears Mr Sulman.