More than £204million to be invested in tackling potholes across West Midlands and Shropshire after damage hits record high

The government last month announced an extra £60m of funding to fill potholes and repair roads across the region.

It comes as part of a record £1.6bn government investment across England - an increase of nearly 50 per cent on road maintenance funding from last year. The West Midlands will receive over £52m worth of funding for the years 2025-26 to add to the already allocated £119m whilst Shropshire will be allocated a £9m boost towards the already allocated £24.5m, bringing a combined total of over £204m.

It comes as figures from the RAC show drivers encounter an average of six potholes per mile in England and Wales, and the cost of pothole damage to vehicles is around £500 on average, with more severe repairs costing considerably more.

According to the AA, fixing potholes is a priority for 96 per cent of drivers, and road users in the West Midlands are also being encouraged to report potholes in their area to their local council through a dedicated Gov.uk page.  

Each local authority will be able to use the money to target problem areas. It can use its share of the total £1.6bn pot for 2025/6 to identify which of their roads are in most need of repair, and to deliver immediate fixes for communities and raise living standards across every area of the country.

Richard Parker, mayor of the West Midlands, said: “A lack of funding has left our region’s roads in an embarrassing state - cratered with dangerously deep potholes and leaving road users to pay the price for broken promises. Securing this extra government funding directly to our local councils means they’ll finally have the funding to be able to deal with the problem - fixing more roads and pavements to make journeys better.”