Bradford to get ?14m to tackle the district’s worst potholes
A pothole in Bradford city centre (Image: T&A)
MORE than £14 million will be spent resurfacing Bradford’s roads as part of a West Yorkshire-wide blitz on potholes.
The £73m fund will aim to reduce the need for regular “patch jobs” on local roads.
Proposals to invest the cash will be discussed by members of the West Yorkshire[1] Combined Authority next week, where members will be told roads have suffered from an “increasing number of extreme weather events”.
As part of £100m funding commitments to make roads safer, more than £73 million will go towards tackling potholes by resurfacing hundreds of roads across West Yorkshire.
Further improvements to walking and cycling, as well as pedestrian safety, are also covered in the plans to help revamp the region’s roads over the next two years.
The funding was allocated via the Government’s City Regions Sustainable Transport Settlement (CRSTS) awarded to West Yorkshire when it became a Mayoral Authority in 2021.
As part of the works, more than £67 million will go towards resurfacing 970 roads and 245 pavements across West Yorkshire – as the Combined Authority continues work towards improved road surfacing to minimise the risk of future potholes.
Of this, Bradford will get £14,761,000[2], Calderdale will receive £7,315,000, Kirklees will get a share of £15,801,000 Leeds £17,719,000 and Wakefield £11,700,00 An extra £6.5 million will also be spent from the Department for Transport’s pothole fund to tackle some of the most urgent pothole problems.
Money from the CRSTS will also go towards hundreds more works to improve drainage, structures and street furniture, as well as schemes to boost walking and cycling.
Another £4.4 million will go towards measures to increase safety on West Yorkshire’s roads, including traffic calming, pedestrian and cycle facilities, speed limit reductions and parking management.
A decision on the funding is expected to be made at the forthcoming West Yorkshire Combined Authority meeting on Thursday, July 27.
A report to the meeting says: “A poorly maintained highway network creates increased dangers for users, congestion and pollution caused by unplanned emergency repairs.
“Other problems include more damage from the increasing number of extreme weather events[3] such as the freeze thaw cycle which can rapidly increase the size of potholes and road surface damage, leading to increased problems for residents and higher levels of third-party claims against councils.”
Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, Planning and Transport at Bradford[4] Council, said: “The £14.8 million funding over two years for road resurfacing across the Bradford district is very welcome.
“It comes at a time when we are already significantly investing in a strategic programme to improve the district’s roads, creating sustainable transport corridors that will reduce journey times, enhance safety and improve air quality.”