£200m to ‘radically transform’ quality of Liverpool’s roads
Liverpool City Council is to invest an additional £200m in road repairs in a landmark investment aimed at tackling the deteriorating quality of the highways network in the city.
It says most of this new investment will come from borrowing £185m over 25 years at low interests rates, supported by savings generated by the council’s transformation plan and ‘Invest to Earn’ strategy, which generates income streams from commercialising council assets.
A report to the city council’s cabinet this Friday, April 20, will set out a plan to invest: £160m in road reconstruction over the next five years; £25m in resurfacing and patching work; and £15m specifically earmarked for addressing potholes.
The council says the £200m package is expected to radically improve the condition of roads across the city and is a response to years of chronic underfunding, following central Government cuts of £444m to the city council’s budget since 2010.
According to the council, a recent peer review by the Local Government Association found Liverpool City Council had prudent levels of debt for one of the major ‘core cities’ and robust financial management processes in place.
Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson, said: “I drive on the same roads as everyone else, so there is no-one more aware of the problem than me.
“This major new investment in our highways is a response to the scale of the problem we face.
“The people of Liverpool can be assured that we have been lobbying the Government consistently in recent years to help us fix the problem, but it’s clear from the Chancellor’s recent spring statement there is no reprieve from the Government’s austerity programme.”
He added: “We cannot wait for help to arrive, so I have decided that we will take action to address the problem of potholes and poor road surfaces with this major new investment, which will radically transform the quality of our road network across the city.
“High quality roads are the arteries of a modern, fast-growing city like Liverpool, but I am also concerned about the safety of road users and I don’t want to see anyone injured or killed due to weaving around potholes.”
Mayor Anderson concluded: “This investment is also good news because it will create jobs in the city as well as generating new apprenticeship opportunities.
“Ultimately, doing nothing is just not an option as far as I am concerned.
“Clearly, the deteriorating state of our roads is a national problem, but to do nothing in Liverpool will simply see the cost of fixing our roads soar in future years. This is why we must act now.”
