Plans to spend £120m extra on road maintenance backed by councillors

The proposals, which would also see £8 million extra spent on highways this year, were voted through at a meeting of the full council on Thursday.

Highways officers will now prepare a more detailed report on a costed programme of work, which will come back to members at a future meeting for the final green light.

Deputy leader Steve Charmley, the new portfolio holder for highways, said: “We have acknowledged that the state of our roads is not where we want it to be.

“We are not alone, it is a national issue, and this administration will continue to challenge the government for appropriate funding to allow us to maintain our network at at least a satisfactory condition.

“The service is changing. Budget management and work prioritisation are improving rapidly, however we can’t make the effective changes we need to without further funding.

“The Conservative group pledged an additional £40 million over the next four years as part of its manifesto pledge, however it’s clear to me, having looked at the state of the roads and the work that is needed, that even that is not enough to make the changes which we need to do.”

He said the final figure could be anywhere between £60m and £120m, with the money to come from other capital budgets or borrowing.

The initial £8m in 2021/22 will be funded by changes to the capital programme – which means taking money from other projects.

Councillor Charmley said: “This is a critical investment not only for this year but for the next four years.

“I have stated publicly that the roads will be fixed, but we need the tools to mend them.

“I expect a report to come back to council outlining how and when the greater proportion of the investment will be brought forward.”

Concerns were voiced by opposition members that other services could be impacted by reduced budgets if so much money was redirected to highways.

Councillor Andy Boddington said: “I welcome the overall thrust of this, that something needs to be done about the state of our highways and if we are to get them resolved then we do need to be ambitious.

“However I am concerned about the first year of expenditure and the re-profiling of the capital programme.”

Councillor David Vasmer, leader of the opposition Liberal Democrat group, said it was important to ensure extra money was not simply thrown at the problem as an alternative to ensuring highways contractor Kier was delivering good value for money.

He said: “I know efforts are being made to improve the performance of Kier, but I do worry that if we’re putting a lot more money into highways we’re not forgetting about the fact I think there have been inefficiencies in the way the Kier contract has operated.”

Councillor Julia Buckley proposed an amendment, to stall the impending closure of highways depots in Bridgnorth and Hodnet, until councillors had been given the chance to vote on them.

The amendment failed to win support, with Councillor Charmley saying the sites were no longer needed and “three depots is more than enough for a county the size of Shropshire”.

Summing up, Councillor Richard Marshall, deputy cabinet member for highways said: “Our residents not only demand but they deserve better highways. The only way we can do that is investing into those.”