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Written question asked by Lord Patten (Conservative) on Monday, 16 October 2023, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Monday, 30 October 2023. It was answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton (Conservative) on Wednesday, 25 October 2023 on behalf of the Department for Transport.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Question

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the condition of road infrastructure in England and how many potholes they have (1) identified and (2) filled to completion on (a) roads and (b) pedestrian pavements.

Answer

Local highway authorities have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the highways network in their area. The Act does not set out specific standards of maintenance, as it is for each individual local highway authority to assess which parts of its network need repair and what standards should be applied, based upon their local knowledge and circumstances.

The Department annually collects and publishes information on GOV.UK regarding the condition of roads in England, covering surface condition, skidding resistance, and highway maintenance treatments and expenditure. This information comes from surveys which identify a series of road surface defects, although some of these defects may be related to potholes, the number of potholes cannot be recorded. The most recent release can be read on GOV.UK.

The Department does not hold information on the condition of footpaths, this information will be held by local authorities for their own asset management needs.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
HL10576
Session
2022-23
Subjects
Public footpaths Roads Repairs and maintenance
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk