New pothole-busting machine to fix Gloucestershire's roads

A new £500,000 pothole-busting machine has arrived in Gloucestershire to help fix the county's roads.

The 13-tonne JCB Pothole Pro will cut away damaged sections of the road surface in advance of the repair teams.

The machine, which was delivered to Gloucestershire County Council this week, will operate in every district this spring.

Eight teams will work across the county in addition to 30 regular repair teams.

A spray injection patching machine, which doubles the speed of pothole repairs, will also work its way across the county.

The council revealed last month the list of more than 150 roads it is planning to resurface in the current financial year.

A Gloucestershire County Council spokesperson said that now the weather had started to improve they are stepping up efforts to tackle potholes and deal with the impact of winter weather.

"The UK's wettest winter for 130 years has put our roads under pressure, but we are trialling new materials and techniques to make better longer-lasting repairs to Gloucestershire roads," he told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

"We are continuing to try new methods to boost efficiency and ensure we have the right tool for the right job."

During the spring and summer, the highways teams will focus on larger roads, using hot rolled asphalt, the most durable main road material, as this is weather dependent.

Smaller roads, where highways workers can use other materials, will be resurfaced in the autumn and winter.

Credit: Carmelo Garcia / LDRS