18/2/2009 - Highways gang gets to work

A specialist repair team is getting to work tackling potholes on roads in South Lakeland.

Cumbria Highways has set up a four-man strong highways patching gang –in addition to the existing highway teams - to deal with potholes on routes that have been hard-hit by recent winter weather.

The team –who will make first-time permanent carriageway repairs –are starting on the A5074 and A684 near Kendal and will then be moving on to other routes across the district that will be selected and prioritised following regular safety inspections.

Potholes become more of a problem in late winter and early spring when the road network has been subjected to constant freezing and thawing.

The colder it gets the more brittle road surfaces become. Water seeps into cracks and expands as it freezes. The expanding ice puts pressure on the surface material, eventually breaking it in a process like the geological frost shattering that affects rocks. The process deepens and widens cracks until finally a pothole is formed.

The highways patching gang carry all the tools and equipment needed to carry out swift and permanent repairs.

To extend even further the programme of pothole repairs in South Lakeland, and cope with the pressure this is placing on existing services, Cumbria County Council’s local committee for South Lakeland have also agreed to look at identifying funding to pay for another dedicated team. 

Councillor Geoff Cook, Cumbria County Council’s local member for Kendal Highgate and chairman of the local committee for South Lakeland, said: "At this time of year potholes can be a real problem so the dedicated patching gang will play a vital role in ensuring the roads are maintained to a satisfactory standard.

"They will be directed to various routes where problems have been identified and I’m sure people will really notice the benefits of the work they carry out."

Highways patching gangs operated successfully across the county last winter when Cumbria County Council waged war on potholes with a special £1million fighting fund. 

ENDS

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