Councils must prove they are doing more to fix potholes and future-proof roads under tough new reporting requirements issued by the Government.
For the first time councils will need to demonstrate publicly how well they repair their roads and what they are doing to avoid repeat visits to the same stretch of asphalt – encouraging full road resurfacing, preventing potholes and an end to short-term patch fixes.
Once these transparency reports are published in September (2026), everyone in England will be able to see just how well their council is tackling the pothole plague and exactly how many of their roads are due for resurfacing.
Government has given local authorities a record £7.3 billion in long-term road funding to turn the tide on the pothole plague.
The new guidance will be used to update the red/amber/green (RAG) ratings first published by the Government earlier this year, showing what progress councils have made.
Those green rated local authorities were able to demonstrate they are following best practice, such as investing in long-term pothole prevention and full road resurfacing rather than just patching up potholes.
If councils do not follow this new guidance, or fail to publish their reports on time, they will have almost a third of this year’s funding held back to ensure they are transparent with taxpayers.
Simon Lightwood, roads and buses minister, said: “For too long motorists have been left incensed by short-term work being prioritised over genuine long-term repairs. Thanks to our new guidance, that changes today.
“For the first time not only will councils need to show just how many potholes they are filling in, but what they are doing to avoid going back to fix the same pothole time and again – something which understandably infuriates drivers.
“This is backed by a record £7.3 billion investment to help councils deliver the long-term road repairs motorists deserve.”
The announcement follows other tough government action to tackle potholes. In April it was announced new measures will see up to a third of the £1.6 billion in highways funding (£524 million) for local authorities will be withdrawn unless they can prove they are meeting strict requirements.
Meanwhile a record £7.3 billion in long-term funding is now in place for local authorities to get on with the job of fixing their roads which, alongside greater accountability through the new RAG ratings, is showing for the first time how effective local authorities are at spending this funding.
All red-rated councils are receiving additional support from the government, including a total of £300,000 worth of expert help to help councils raise their standards and fix more roads.
Simon Williams, RAC head of policy, said: “Aside from potholes themselves, there’s nothing that annoys drivers more than ones that have been poorly repaired and become potholes again in a matter of weeks or months. Bad repairs are a waste of time and money, so it’s positive the government is prioritising long-term fixes over short-term patching and dashing.
“Potholes need to be fixed promptly and permanently as they are a serious road safety danger to those on two wheels, along with causing expensive damage to vehicles. The poor state of Britain’s roads is drivers’ biggest gripe, so it’s good to see a new approach being taken.
“Fixing potholes once and carrying out preventative maintenance that stops them forming in the first place is a big step towards improving our roads for the future.”
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