Moray roads budget in line for £3m funding boost

MORAY Council's roads maintenance budget has been handed a £3 million boost.

Councillors on the local authority's economic growth, housing and environmental sustainability committee has agreed to a budget worth £8.5 million for region’s roads network in 2021/22, up £3 million from the previous year’s budget.

Full carriageway resurfacing forms part of the budget, which the council say will providing longer-term benefits.

Largely due to interruptions to planned work in 2020/21 as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, the programme of resurfacing, drainage and street lighting works will be rolled over into this year.

Winter maintenance expenditure for last year was £2.25 million with a particularly busy period in December, January and February with an almost daily gritting service throughout.

Councillor Graham Leadbitter, chairman of the economic growth, housing and environmental sustainability committee, said: “The committee consensus is that spending on our roads network will need to be revisited but for now our hard working teams will continue to catch up with the programme of resurfacing and maintain our roads to the best of their ability.

“In the council’s recent budget, councillors agreed to carry forward a significant underspend that resulted from Covid restrictions and our Roads Maintenance Service will therefore be carrying out significantly more work than normal this year.

“Looking beyond that we will need to take stock of how that catch up work progresses through the year and what is needed for future years.”

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