Strong Roads Today

Stronger Roads Today

Hampshire County Council is deploying extra resources to strengthen the county’s 5,500 miles of roads as quickly and efficiently as possible.

To do this, we’re investing an additional £22.5 million 2024 to 2025 - on top of our existing highway maintenance budgets and the Government grant funding we receive from the Department for Transport.

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We’re making Hampshire’s roads stronger.

Fixing more potholes and road defects, thanks to…
  • £22.5m extra investment
  • A repair approx. every two minutes
  • 180,909 repairs a year (2023 to 2024)

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Lots more traffic and wetter, freezing winters over the past few years have led to a rapid deterioration in the quality of UK road networks and a higher-than-normal incidence of potholes. Freeze and thaw temperature fluctuations can make water within the road surfaces expand, contract and expand again, causing cracks and new potholes to form - and sometimes rapidly! More HGVs on our roads are also a contributory factor.
 
When potholes or any other road defects are reported to our highways team, they will make an assessment on what action is needed and this will usually depend on the type of defect, its size, its location, and the severity. One of our inspectors may also visit the site.
 
Response times for fixing potholes that are classed as safety defects can vary, as shown below.
  • We will generally make safe and repair potholes based on a risk assessment of the severity and likelihood of it causing damage. The timescales for a repair will usually vary between 24 hours and two months.
  • We do not normally prioritise the repair of potholes that are less than 40mm deep on any road, but we will review them at the next scheduled inspection. They may also be repaired as part of planned works or alongside other local repair works.
All road defects are repaired through our highway maintenance contract with Milestone Infrastructure.
 
Wherever possible, we try to make a permanent repair. This involves cutting out the damaged part of the road surface to create solid edges around the pothole and a solid base, removing any loose material and then backfilling and compacting with an appropriate surfacing material, while sealing the edges. This isn't always practical due to the size of the pothole or its location, the weather prevailing conditions or the existing poor condition of the road. In these circumstances, other techniques will be considered including 'dragon patching', infra-red patching and sometimes we will use an infill repair to quickly remove the hazard.
 

Repair techniques

Dragon patchers

Our dragon patchers can quickly repair larger, shallower, areas of carriageway that have deteriorated using spray-injection. This technique is not suitable for all repairs but it can be particularly effective on rural roads.

Infrared patching

This is an innovative technique that uses infrared heaters to soften the existing road material around a defect so it can be mixed with a rejuvenating product and then mechanically pressed firmly back into place. This method creates a seamless and durable repair that can be completed quickly with minimal traffic disruption.

Infill repairs

Infill repairs involve cleaning the base of the pothole area, spraying the base with a sealing agent, filling the hole with either hot or cold road repair material, and mechanically packing down the material to ensure it is level. This process helps restore the surface quickly and remove the hazard.

Additionally, during periods when the likelihood of potholes forming increases, for example during the colder and wetter months, our 'Find and Fix’ pothole gangs are deployed across Hampshire to speed up pothole repairs. These gangs can repair defects as they find them, usually by carrying out infill repairs.

Our longer-term maintenance programme

When multiple potholes and other defects have occurred in a specific location, it is likely that the road structure will need more extensive – and costly – repairs to extend its life.

As well as carrying out pothole and other road defect repairs we have a programme of larger scale work to ensure Hampshire's roads are more resilient to the effects of wetter, freezing weather and heavy traffic. These works include, carriageway and footway resurfacing, surface treatments and structural drainage repairs.

Some of the work we do is dependent on the weather, requiring road surfaces to be dry, so our programme can sometimes be subject to change at short notice.

Our engineers will routinely carry out electronic condition scanning on all main roads and they will visually inspect all other roads. They will then use this data, together with other information that we hold such as the amount of reactive maintenance that has taken place, to help identify the priority sites that justify further work.

Treatment types

Surface dressing

Surface dressing is used where the road surface is in a reasonably good structural condition, but requires a preservative treatment to seal the surface and prevent water penetration and restore skid resistance. With this type of treatment a large area can be covered very quickly and at relatively low cost.

Micro surfacing

Micro surfacing is a more durable process which places a slightly thicker layer of a completely new material on the existing road surface. It takes longer to apply than surface dressing and is normally used where roads are busier, and where the road would benefit from some minor reshaping.

Resurfacing

Resurfacing is carried out where a road is very badly worn and structurally weak. The existing road surface is completely removed and a new surface is laid as a replacement to provide a structurally strong road. This type of treatment can last many years.

Joint and crack sealing

Joint and crack sealing is carried out each year on all roads. This helps to prevent water getting into and underneath the road surface which can cause the structure to weaken and potholes to form.

Road closures

In order to carry out the majority of road repairs, we must by law, keep road workers, our staff and members of the public safe, so we often have to temporarily close a road.

Residents and businesses who will be directly affected by a road closure are usually notified in advance, in writing, and advised what to do, should they need to access their property/premises while the work is in progress.

How can you help us improve our roads?

Reporting potholes and other highway issues to the County Council plays a vital role in helping us to maintain Hampshire’s roads. You can report road defects including potholes and other road issue via the OurHants app, or online where you can also track the progress of your enquiry.

Report potholes and road defects

More teams deployed to fix potholes and improve safety

We're deploying more teams to fix potholes and other defects on Hampshire’s roads. The County Council's Cabinet Member for Highways, Councillor Lulu Bowerman, has shared this update on our work to make roads stronger and safer following a visit to our highways depot in Bishops Waltham.