Backlog of Argyll and Bute potholes would cose £112m to fix

The party sent freedom of information requests to all of Scotland’s local authorities asking for the estimated cost of their road repair backlog.

With 28 out of 32 providing figures, the total bill was £2,562,057,538.

This is up from the figure obtained by Labour in 2022, when the total bill was more than £1.7 billion.

In the latest figures, East Dunbartonshire had the highest estimate for repair costs at £598,454,000.

Dumfries and Galloway had the second highest bill at £253,471,000.

In the Highlands, the figure was £233,631,000.

The figures reveal that it would cost Argyll and Bute Council a total of £112,251,000 in repair costs, which is a one per drop compared to 2022's figure of £112,351,000

But as the Advertiser reported in January, a freedom of information request by climate change action group Round Our Way revealed that there were more than 17,000 potholes reported on Argyll and Bute's road network in the past six years.

The data also showed that the year-on-year number rose from 3,113 in 2022, to 3,357 in 2023 - despite the survey only running until November of the latter year.

Damage from potholes can be a costly business (Image: PA)

Scottish Labour transport spokesman Alex Rowley said: “Under the SNP, Scotland’s roads have been left to crumble and drivers are paying the price.

“Scotland’s pothole-ridden roads are a damning symbol of SNP failure and a daily reminder of how badly this government has hollowed out council budgets.

“The SNP must end the brutal cuts to councils and deliver for the communities across Scotland being so badly let down by this out-of-touch SNP government.”

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But investment minister Tom Arthur hit out at the Labour UK Government’s announcement of cuts to tackle a £22 billion black hole Chancellor Rachel Reeves said had been “covered up” by the previous government.

“Just this week, the UK Labour Government announced £22 billion of cuts to public spending that will see millions wiped from the Scottish Government’s budget to deliver key services,” he said.

“With no sense of irony, the Labour Party are now making spending demands despite so far failing to inform the Scottish Government on the full extent this latest wave of austerity will have on Scotland’s budget.

“In these challenging times, people rightly expect serious discussion and co-operation between political parties – it’s time for Labour in Scotland to step up to the plate.”

An Argyll and Bute spokesperson said: “Thanks to prudent investment and sensible engineering solutions, our road network has steadily improved over the past few years.

"Road treatments, like surface dressing, proved cost-effective, halted the deterioration of the surfacing and began to improve network.

"These treatments target areas in the earlier stages of deterioration and improve skid resistance, help seal cracks and prevent water ingress, the main cause of deterioration.

“While there is no doubt that increasing traffic levels and Scotland’s challenging climate can have a detrimental effect, it is great news for our local communities that our maintenance programme is paying dividends.”