Agenda item

This Council notes with concern that the Administration are not doing enough to address the pothole crisis we have on Leeds’ roads and are showing no signs of developing a meaningful strategy for highway maintenance to address the woeful state of so many of our city's roads and pavements.

Potholes create safety hazards and misery for road users, cause damage to vehicles, and cost the Council thousands of pounds in compensation pay outs to those affected.

Recent data shows the number of potholes reported in Leeds has risen by almost 60% under the last five years of the Labour administration, with 13,722 potholes reported last year alone. There were more than 300 accidents relating to potholes in 2023, compared to an average of 190 between 2019 and 2022, and compensation paid out to those affected by potholes has also nearly doubled in recent years. Estimates suggest there is a mean average of 19.5 years backlog in highways maintenance and it would take £288 million to bring all roads up to an acceptable standard.

Council welcomes the huge amount of government funding provided to local authorities, including Leeds, to help repair potholes. This includes £17,719,592 in 2023 for road resurfacing works in Leeds, allocated by WYCA from the government’s City Regions Sustainable Transport Settlement. But the Council should be investing more of its own money in improving the condition of the city’s roads.

Council calls for a report to be presented to Executive Board laying out a clear plan for pothole repair, including addressing the large disparities between the average time it takes to fix potholes in different parts of the city, and setting out a long term strategy for addressing the backlog in highways maintenance work.

It was moved by Councillor Lamb, seconded by Councillor N Buckley that this Council notes with concern that the Administration are not doing enough to address the pothole crisis we have on Leeds’ roads and are showing no signs of developing a meaningful strategy for highway maintenance to address the woeful state of so many of our city's roads and pavements.

Potholes create safety hazards and misery for road users, cause damage to vehicles, and cost the Council thousands of pounds in compensation pay outs to those affected.

Recent data shows the number of potholes reported in Leeds has risen by almost 60% under the last five years of the Labour administration, with 13,722 potholes reported last year alone. There were more than 300 accidents relating to potholes in 2023, compared to an average of 190 between 2019 and 2022, and compensation paid out to those affected by potholes has also nearly doubled in recent years. Estimates suggest there is a mean average of 19.5 years backlog in highways maintenance and it would take £288 million to bring all roads up to an acceptable standard.

Council welcomes the huge amount of government funding provided to local authorities, including Leeds, to help repair potholes. This includes £17,719,592 in 2023 for road resurfacing works in Leeds, allocated by WYCA from the government’s City Regions Sustainable Transport Settlement. But the Council should be investing more of its own money in improving the condition of the city’s roads.

Council calls for a report to be presented to Executive Board laying out a clear plan for pothole repair, including addressing the large disparities between the average time it takes to fix potholes in different parts of the city, and setting out a long term strategy for addressing the backlog in highways maintenance work.

An amendment was moved by Councillor Hart-Brooke, seconded by Councillor Downes

Delete paragraphs 4 & 5 and replace with:

Council commits to allocating funding from government and more of its own money in improving the conditions of roads equitably in all wards of the city. The Council will ensure work done by its own teams are done to a professional standard that will endure in a do it right first time approach. Council will also work to enhance the contractual warranties external companies give so that those enjoying multi million pound contracts don’t leave roads that look acceptable on day one but quickly deteriorate, leaving the Council to fix and the tax payer paying twice.

The amended motion would then read:

This Council notes with concern that the Administration are not doing enough to address the pothole crisis we have on Leeds’ roads and are showing no signs of developing a meaningful strategy for highway maintenance to address the woeful state of so many of our city's roads and pavements.

Potholes create safety hazards and misery for road users, cause damage to vehicles, and cost the Council thousands of pounds in compensation pay outs to those affected.

Recent data shows the number of potholes reported in Leeds has risen by almost 60% under the last five years of the Labour administration, with 13,722 potholes reported last year alone. There were more than 300 accidents relating to potholes in 2023, compared to an average of 190 between 2019 and 2022, and compensation paid out to those affected by potholes has also nearly doubled in recent years. Estimates suggest there is a mean average of 19.5 years backlog in highways maintenance and it would take £288 million to bring all roads up to an acceptable standard

Council commits to allocating funding from government and more of its own money in improving the conditions of roads equitably in all wards of the city. The Council will ensure work done by its own teams are done to a professional standard that will endure in a do it right first time approach. Council will also work to enhance the contractual warranties external companies give so that those enjoying multi million pound contracts don’t leave roads that look acceptable on day one but quickly deteriorate, leaving the Council to fix and the tax payer paying twice.

A second amendment was moved by Councillor Hayden, seconded by Councillor Lewis

Delete all after “This Council…” and replace with:

“…believes the £288m estimated backlog in highways maintenance shows the real impact of Conservative Government austerity on roads in Leeds in the context of the £2.7bn cut from council services by the Government since 2010. 

Council supports calls from the Local Government Association for the Government to provide greater, longer term and year-on-year consistency of funding to ensure councils are better supported to deliver the services taxpayers need and deserve. Council welcomes the imminent publication of its highways maintenance strategy to show how this council is addressing the highways maintenance back log caused by chronic government underfunding and calls for a report to update Executive Board on this work.”

The amendment in the name of Councillor Hart-Brooke was declared lost the amendment in the name of Councillor Hayden was carried and upon being put to the vote it was

RESOLVED – That this Council believes the £288m estimated backlog in highways maintenance shows the real impact of Conservative Government austerity on roads in Leeds in the context of the £2.7bn cut from council services by the Government since 2010. 

Council supports calls from the Local Government Association for the Government to provide greater, longer term and year-on-year consistency of funding to ensure councils are better supported to deliver the services taxpayers need and deserve. Council welcomes the imminent publication of its highways maintenance strategy to show how this council is addressing the highways maintenance back log caused by chronic government underfunding and calls for a report to update Executive Board on this work.”

On the requisition of Councillors Flint and Lewis the voting on the substantive motion in the name of Councillor Hayden was recorded as follows;

YES – 61

Akhtar, Ali, Almass, Arif, Bithell, Bowden, Bromley, Brooks, Burke, Carlill, Coupar, Dowson, Dye, Edwards, Farley, Flint, France-Mir, Garvani, Gibson, Grahame, Gruen, Hamilton, Hannan, Harland, Hayden, Heselwood, Hinchcliffe, Holroyd-Case, A Hussain, Z Hussain, Iqbal, Jenkins, Jones, Khan, Lennox, Lewis, Maloney, Manaka, Marshall-Katung, Martin, McCluskey, McKenna, Millar, Parnham, Pryor, Rafique, Renshaw, Ritchie, Rontree, Scopes, Sewards, Shahzad, Sharpe, Smart, Taylor, Thomson, Wilson, Wray, Blackburn, Carlisle, Stables,

NO – 25

Alderson, B Anderson, C Anderson, L Buckley, N Buckley, Andrew Carter, Amanda Carter, Cohen, Firth, Foster, Harrington, Lamb, Robinson, D Seary, S Seary, Smith, Stephenson, Chapman, Downes, Golton, Hart-Brooke, Lay, Dobson, Field, McCormack,

ABSTAIN - 4

Dixon, Pogson-Golden, Finnigan, Senior