Kent County Council has set out plans for £8.5m to be used to repair and resurface roads over the next two years.
The plans are funded through a £135m pot allocated to Kent for an11-year plan to improve local roads.
A nationwide programme of pothole repairs and road resurfacing projects, made possible by the first tranche of £8.3 billion in reallocated HS2 funding, has been revealed – with the first set of roads already having been resurfaced to make journeys by road safer, faster, and smoother.
As a condition of the funding, and to make sure money is being spent on pothole repairs, local authorities are required to have published two-year plans detailing exactly which local roads will benefit.
The pothole blitz began in March and runs into autumn this year.
For Thanet the roads (as of April 17) are:
| Road | Type of works | Surface area resurfaced (if applicable) m² | Status |
| Eastern Esplanade | Permanent carriageway patching, adding life to the asset and improving ride quality and safety | 1116 | Completed |
| Edge End Road | Permanent carriageway patching, adding life to the asset and improving ride quality and safety | 1483.34 | Completed |
| Green Road | Permanent carriageway patching, adding life to the assets and improving road condition | 541.3 | Planned works |
| Laundry Road | Permanent carriageway patching, adding life to the assets and improving road condition | 188 | Planned works |
| Manston Road | Permanent carriageway patching, adding life to the assets and improving road condition | 3333.12 | Planned works |
| Rosedale Road | Permanent carriageway patching, adding life to the asset and improving ride quality and safety | 706 | Completed |
| South Eastern Road | Permanent carriageway patching, adding life to the asset and improving ride quality and safety | 442.23 | Completed |
| Springfield Road | Permanent carriageway patching, adding life to the asset and improving ride quality and safety | 517.24 | Completed |
| Watchester Road | Permanent carriageway patching, adding life to the asset and improving ride quality and safety | 592.44 | Completed |
KCC’s Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport, Neil Baker said: “Between April and December 2023 we repaired 54,814 potholes and mended or resurfaced more than 416,991m2 of road, which is equivalent to 57 Wembley football pitches.
“Kent’s roads are among the busiest in the country, which is why throughout the winter we have been responding to reports of potholes by completing emergency repairs where defects present a risk to safety.
“With the weather improving we are turning our attention to completing permanent fixes the first time we visit the site, so the travelling public can be confident that repairs will last.”
South Thanet MP Craig Mackinlay said: “I know from speaking to people across Thanet how frustrating potholes and poor-quality roads can be.
“Whilst Labour are waging a war on motorists with blanket 20mph limits and a ban on road building in Wales and the ULEZ expansion in London to tax the poorest drivers off the road, as Chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Fair Fuel I am on the side of hard-pressed drivers and want to do all I can to encourage government to help them.
“That is why I welcome this government funding to improve journeys for drivers across the country, funding road and pothole repairs, and committing £135m over the next ten years to improve roads across Kent, including those in Thanet.”
County Councillor Karen Constantine said: “As Ramsgate County Councillor I can confidently say potholes (closely followed by blocked drains) are the matters I receive most complaints about. I hope that this year’s blitz tackles the pothole problems thoroughly – as many residents have pointed out all too often the repair is temporary.
“I note in advance of local elections up and down the country the Conservatives are at long last heeding the plight of the cyclist, motorist, mobility scooters users and even those who push prams and pushchairs across our roads. They are rightly outraged by state of the local roads.
“Ramsgate residents will remember that when HS2, the high-speed rail project, was scrapped last year, we were promised that money would be diverted to deal with our lamentable roads. So far we are seeing a trickle.”
Report potholes at www.kent.gov.uk/potholes
