Financial pot grows bigger for essential road repairs

WITH the local pothole problem shown to be the result of long-running neglect, Sinn Féin MLA Declan McAleer has welcomed the Executive’s announcement of a £1million funding boost for road resurfacing.

Earlier this week, Infrastructure Minister, John O’Dowd, revealed a significant injection would be shot into resourcing road repairs across the North.

The additional £1million will be spent tackling potholes before the end of this financial year, and comes less than a month after it was reported that roads in Fermanagh and Omagh receive nearly £4,000 less per kilometre than the average for the North.

Reacting to his party colleague’s announcement, West Tyrone MLA Decalan McAleer said, “I welcome today’s announcement by to help improve our roads and fix potholes.

“This is an important and quick intervention by the Minister to invest in our roads, to address the backlog in road maintenance work and make our roads safer.”

Speaking to the press about his decision to allocate the additional funding, Minister O’Dowd said, “Repairing potholes is a routine operation for my roads staff who have been working as hard as they can to stay on top of the issue.

“Unfortunately, a number of factors has recently made the situation worse. For the last decade, the Department has been operating in a challenging financial position due to British Government cuts and austerity, which has had an impact on road maintenance activities and the overall condition of the road network. Add to that the impact of climate change, with the wettest October in more than 153 years of records, which caused severe damage to some roads across the North.

“This £1million investment today is the start of addressing the problem, it’s a statement of intent that I will seek out the investment to improve our road networks for motorists and cyclists.

“This is a positive announcement which will have a real impact on road users. I will continue to press for vital funding to ensure our roads are maintained to a high standard.”