THE recent announcement of additional Government funding for potholes is welcomed but, in order to improve the condition of our roads, it is necessary to undertake substantial resurfacing work. Wiltshire Council is doing this with a six-year programme of increased investment on our roads.

This totals an additional £53m and is already showing an improvement in the road condition. However, it is not possible to do everything at once, and we are having to prioritise work, especially with regard to treating the busier, higher speed roads for safety reasons.

Mr Griffiths is I note that you comment on potholes and the fact you counted over 200 on one stretch of road. This tells me that we are fulfilling our statutory duty to fill and make safe potholes. However you are incorrect in your claim that most potholes are caused by poor road condition. In Wiltshire many potholes are caused by underground water action which erodes from below and then the surface crumbles with the weight of the traffic above.

However, the condition of our roads could be better, which is why we have, as I have already said, doubled the investment in roads maintenance. Significantly, this is now four times more than the investment levels during some years of the previous county council.

With regard to our failure to prevent the water company digging up the newly-laid road, the public utilities have a statutory right to maintain, repair, or replace apparatus in our streets. Wiltshire Council, as the highway authority, has a duty to co-ordinate works on the road network, and the legislation allows Wiltshire Council to direct a utility to carry out works at certain times, but only if we believe that the work is likely to cause serious traffic disruption.

Reinstatement of works in the highway by public utilities must comply with the specification approved by the Secretary of State. Sealing of the vertical edge of a bituminous reinstatement is required, surface over-banding of the joint is optional at the discretion of the public utility.

Our Street Works Technicians monitor approximately 30 per cent of all utilities works at various stages to ensure the work complies with all the relevant standards and codes. Of course in the past we only had electricity, water and gas to worry about. Now we also have broadband and solar farms who have been happily ripping up our roads.

The works at the north end of the new Hilperton relief road were undertaken by Wessex Water to repair a leak and restore a service to the public. This was a new leak, and no activity had been identified or planned prior or during the roundabout construction.

Again, this was not something that could be delayed as a customer had no water to their property. The longer the leak continues, the more damage it would potentially cause to the highway asset.

Philip Whitehead

Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport

Wiltshire Council