- A quarter of B and C roads in Derbyshire in need repairs
- Half of unclassified roads in Hammersmith & Fulham in
need of upgrade
- “Our local roads cannot take another round of cuts” says AA
Data released by the Department for Transport today* shows that a
third of all local B and C roads in England are in desperate need
of maintenance and repair, analysis by the AA shows.
Derbyshire Council has the worst B and C roads, with a quarter
(24%) in need of repair***. A fifth of B and C roads in
Southend-on-Sea (18%) should be considered for repair, with
Shropshire and Derby tied for third place with 13%.
Unclassified roads make up three fifths of roads maintained by
councils but are the most overlooked. AA analysis has found that
15% of unclassified roads are considered “Red” category, the
worst ranking available.
Half (50%****) of unclassified roads in Hammersmith & Fulham
are in need of repair, while more than a third of unclassified
roads in Bury and Wolverhampton need resurfacing.
The data comes with the Prime Minister and Chancellor due to
announce their fiscal statement later this month, but with
rumours swirling about public spending cuts. The AA is warning
the government that cutting funding for roads maintenance would
be detrimental for everyone.
Jack Cousens, head of roads policy for the AA, said: “Roads
across the country are in an awful state and with winter just
around the corner the plague of potholes will only spread.
“Local roads are at great risk of becoming dangerous and need
significant invest to make them safe. Smooth roads also encourage
people to cycle more which would help reach our Net Zero targets.
“Our local roads cannot take another round of cuts. The Prime
Minister and Chancellor should avoid slashing local road
investment later this month.”
ends
NOTES TO EDITORS
* Road conditions in England
to March 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
** Definition of local road types by DfT outlined below (source:
Guidance on road
classification and the primary route network - GOV.UK
(www.gov.uk)):
All UK roads (excluding motorways) fall into the following 4
categories:
- A roads – major roads intended to provide large-scale
transport links within or between areas
- B roads – roads intended to connect different areas, and to
feed traffic between A roads and smaller roads on the network
- classified unnumbered – smaller roads intended to connect
together unclassified roads with A and B roads, and often linking
a housing estate or a village to the rest of the network. Similar
to ‘minor roads’ on an Ordnance Survey map and sometimes known
unofficially as C roads
- unclassified – local roads intended for local traffic. The
vast majority (60%) of roads in the UK fall within this category
***https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1115157/rdc0120.ods
****https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1115161/rdc0130.ods
