When in a hole…

This week road users were faced with the news (not that they needed telling) that the maintenance backlog on local roads (and pavements) is now up to a staggering £18.6bn. Despite all the spin from Keir Starmer and his government about putting more money into fixing potholes, things are getting worse. But this should surprise no-one who uses their local roads and pavements on a daily basis. So why do politicians still think they can spin their way out of this mess?

A bridge too far?

And if you thought £18.6bn was bad enough, when added to the backlog on local bridge maintenance, we’re looking at a staggering £25bn black hole. This is not something that can be fixed by introducing local authority scorecards for road maintenance: a classic deflection technique by Starmer, especially when they didn’t seem particularly accurate, or well thought out. Local authorities need a sustained higher level of funding to enable the backlog to be reduced and our roads and pavements made fit for purpose. Only then will things start to get better.

Political egos

The problem is that rather than taking care of what we have already, to improve safety, especially for people walking and cycling, and to reduce costs for motorists (insurance and repairs), all politicians love a ribbon cutting moment for big new infrastructure. So despite all the evidence that repairing roads generates far more economic growth than new roads, politicians’ egos stop this happening. As a result governments continue to spend money on bigger roads they can’t afford to maintain. The trouble is they are long gone when the problems arise, so holding anyone to account is tricky.

This problem is reflected to some extent at a local level. However, the issue here can be that it’s much easier to bid for funding for new roads than it is for other forms of transport. Just look at the debacle of mass transit in Leeds, compared to the number of new roads that get built.

Will they learn?

Next week the government is due to publish the third roads investment strategy (RIS3) when it is expected to boast about how much it is investing in new roads. Yet what is the point of this if the roads accessing the Strategic Roads Network are literally falling apart?

Surely we need to fix what we’ve got first, rather than chucking money at white elephant schemes such as the Lower Thames Crossing ‘smart’ motorway, or the A66 Northern Trans-Pennine? Especially as these schemes increase traffic and cause our roads to wear out faster, increasing maintenance costs, not reducing them. Both of these routes are also long distance freight routes which would be ideal for moving traffic off our roads and onto rail.

Captured by Conservative lobbyists

Rather than getting the basics right, Labour has been captured by big business and Tory lobbyists to press for big new infrastructure regardless of whether it is what the country needs, or whether it makes economic sense. That’s why the target of approving 150 infrastructure projects in this Parliament is as senseless as the 1.5 million new homes target. Neither will solve the problems they are supposedly trying to fix, because the government isn’t asking the right questions.

Avoiding political wipeout?

We suggested a while ago that Labour could at least attempt to avert the car crash that it faces in the local elections by focusing on investing in local communities to get the basics right, such as fixing our roads. As people started to see the difference, with their own eyes, it would have restored some faith in Labour and in politicians, especially as Labour was elected on a mandate of change. More importantly it would have brought pride back into our country, alongside a sense of hope, to counter the negative narratives from some politicians.

Unfortunately, mesmerised by shiny new infrastructure projects, Labour has lost the plot and most likely a significant number of local councillors in the May elections.

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