Dorset Council’s Cabinet has approved a further £6.3million to help repair and maintain the county’s roads, footways, and cycleways.
When approving the 2021/22 budget on 16 February 2021, Dorset Council allocated £15m of new capital funding for specific projects that had not been prioritised at that stage. In a paper brought to Cabinet today (Tuesday 6 April), recommendations from officers for projects to be funded from that total have been approved.
One of those projects increases investment into highway infrastructure assets by £6.3million, in line with recommendations made by Dorset Council’s Highways Executive Advisory Panel last year.
Last year Dorset Council’s Highways Executive Advisory Panel, made up of elected members from across the political divide and chaired by Cllr Cherry Brooks, Lead Member for Highways, worked alongside officers to determine the financial challenges the Council faced in maintaining the road network and how much additional funding would be needed in the coming year and beyond.
Investment in highway infrastructure directly supports corporate priorities, such as public safety and promoting the economy. Highway assets allow for the movement of vehicles for the purpose of business, employment, emergency services, health, education, tourism, and recreational activities.
The additional funding also covers additional investment in footways/cycleway assets, that encourage people to make healthier travel choices, in the interests of their health and wellbeing.
Cllr Ray Bryan, Portfolio Holder for Highways, Travel and Environment at Dorset Council, said:
“We have a legal responsibility to ensure motorists, cyclists and pedestrians can get to where they need to go safely, and this project recognises that additional funding is needed to address the challenges we face in repairing and maintaining our road network, both financially and practically.
It’s vital that our Highways team has sufficient resources to look after Dorset’s roads so our residents can keep moving and our communities remain connected. I want to personally thank all the members of the Highways Executive Advisory Panel and supporting officers for their hard work on this project.”
I sincerely hope that this extra money will not just be spent in the BCP area. Our village, Marshwood, desperately needs the B3165 to be resurfaced, especially past the Bottle pub. The very west of Dorset does tend to be put on the back-burner, as I’m sure Jackie Sewell would agree! Yours, Disgruntled.
I applaud Dorset Council on the work done maintaining Dorset roads in recent years despite the funding problems experienced by all Local Authorities. I travel quite widely and Dorset roads are in a far better state than most.
However, there is one area that I think needs urgent attention. Road signs are generally in a dirty state and often obscured by vegetation with some in need of replacement. Dilapidated signage gives a poor impression as well as being a safety issue. I imagine a sign maintenance initiative would not be a particularly expensive operation.
It is very pleasing to read each month about the improvements being made to Dorsets’ roads, but it very annoying to have to put up with the disgraceful state of our road (Ashley Drive West). a number of complaints have been lodged over the years, but the nearest we have ever got to remedial work being carried out is a team of surveyors several years ago painted a load of white markings around the worse spots, that was so long ago that they have worn away by the constant traffic using this road to gain access to all the other local roads.
I used to take a lady neighbour with spinal cancer to the local surgery in Ringwood, and no matter how slowly I drove, I caused her severe pain due to the jolting of the car due to the road surface, sadly she has since passed away.
This road is beyond patching up any further, it already has numerous patches in it, it needs serious treatment i.e. resurfacing.
All my neighbours feel that they are beyond complaining, due to having complained already over the years, and our road is not considered in need of restoration.
The amount of housing developement in Ashley Drive West, North and South involves constant very heavy delivery lorries and increased traffic flow which in my opinion has exacerbated the problem.
I would like to ask the council to do a serious survey of the road.
What’s desperately needed are the white lines painting
Dear Sirs do we know when the reinstatement of the road verges with wild flowers along the A31 from Bere Regis to the Round House roundabout is going to take place as at the moment it looks so barren with just the under gravel and large stones showing. Most of these areas were full of ox eye daisies and the like before the drainage work was under taken. The contractors said that it would be dealt with this spring and now is the time to do this work.
When is Wimborne Road east from the Colonial Garage to church Road likely to be resurfaced. It us now over 30 years since anything was done and is in a poor state in places
Please do not forget to repair the residential lanes in rural villages e.g Chetnole
Mill Lane, Chetnole road surface is badly broken up in parts, made worse by builders’ heavy lorries and increase delivery van traffic over the past 12 months. I am assured that this has been given a job number, but the residents would appreciate being given an approximate date when repairs will be made.