Additional £1 million allocated to repair potholes on Northern Ireland's roads as TUV hope funding will help to get 'on top of the backlog'

There were an estimated 110,000 potholes across the province, according to government data analysed by CompareNI.com last month.

Infrastructure Minister John O'Dowd said the funding is to be spent before the end of this financial year in a number of weeks.

He said currently around 7,000 potholes a month are fixed, but more needs to be done.

Mr O'Dowd blamed underinvestment and the impact of climate change for severe damage to some roads.

“This extra allocation will go some way to address the roads with the most significant need,” he said.

“Unfortunately, a number of factors have 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 over 153 years of records, which caused severe damage to some roads across the north.”

The minister added: “This £1 million 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.”

Chair of the assembly’s infrastructure committee Deborah Erskine has welcomed the additional funding, but said that limited investment must be targeted appropriately and that further investment in new technology will be necessary.

The Fermanagh and South Tyrone DUP MLA said: “The allocation of an additional £1million is to be welcomed, but any motorist in any part of Northern Ireland will immediately recognise that this will only help address a small fraction of the problems we face. It will deliver only an additional £250,000 to each DFI section area across the province.

“Recognising the financial pressures we face, and which will continue into the future, it is vital the department looks at new technologies which can deal with potholes more quickly and at a lower cost.

“The funding announced today is a short-term initiative and that is recognised in the fact that it will need to be spent within six weeks.”

A TUV spokesman said: “The issue of potholes is a perennial matter but it is particularly pronounced at the current time.

“DFI have been slow in responding to concerns with potholes reported before Christmas still being unattended to today. Hopefully, this money will go some way to getting on top of the backlog.”

UUP infrastructure spokesperson and deputy chair of the infrastructure committee John Stewart MLA stated: “This is a welcome first step to begin addressing the plague of potholes throughout the country. Sadly it’s barely touches the sides of the crisis at hand.

“We need to hear from the minister and executive on how they plan to tackle the wider problem going forward.”