Bridgnorth waiting longer for road repairs since highways depot shut - councillor
A Shropshire councillor is to take the county authority to task over the length of time it is taking to repair the pavements and roads around her town.
Julia Buckley, who represents Bridgnorth on Shropshire Council and sits on Bridgnorth Town Council, says that while the average completion time for highway repairs in the county is 36 days, many repairs in Bridgnorth are more than a year overdue.
The councillor says that the delays to fix the town streets are either a consequence of Shropshire Council deciding to close down Bridgnorth's local highways depot in September 2021, or down to a "problem with the contractor".
The contract with Kier Highways, which fixes the county's roads and pavements, is soon up for renewal.
In a submitted question for Shropshire Council's next full meeting of councillors on May 11, Councillor Buckley said: "During the April cabinet meeting, portfolio holders and senior officers discussed the current Kier Highways Term Maintenance Contract, describing Kier’s performance as 'some aspects of the contract are performing well and offering good value for money'."
She continued: "On Shropshire’s Fixmystreet portal, the average completion time for a repair is published as 36 days.
"However, this does not reflect the experience of Bridgnorth residents since the closure of the highways depot in our town in September 2021 by this administration.
"Residents have noticed a much longer wait for basic road and footpath repairs."
The councillor cited a number of examples of crumbling infrastructure around Bridgnorth, including Queensway Drive, where there is a broken tarmac footpath and ironwork trip hazard that was reported for repair in March 2022 - 13 months ago.
The handrail to Stoneway steps was reported broken in January last year and has still not been repaired, while it has been more than two years since the pitted and broken footpath along Wenlock Road was reported to Shropshire Council.
The sunken footpath on Castle Hill Terrace has gone more than a year since it was reported and has still not been repaired.
Councillor Buckley added in her question: "Could the cabinet member for Highways explain why Bridgnorth highways repairs appear to be subject to longer delays than the Shropshire average?
"Is Bridgnorth not a priority for Shropshire Highways? Or is the problem with our contractor?"
Shropshire Council is to respond to Councillor Buckley's question at the next full council meeting on May 11.
