Future of Roads Minister Lilian Greenwood has visited Derbyshire – home of the worst potholes in the country, according to the RAC – to see cutting-edge technology helping councils tackle potholes.
She visited the JCB power systems plant at Foston the Minister spoke to engineers to learn about the latest innovations being used to tackle the pothole plague. She will operate JCB’s ‘pothole pro’, a machine that can fix a pothole in eight minutes, with a cost of around £30. The ‘pothole pro’ is currently used by 20 local authorities.
A £1.6bn investment in pothole repair nationally includes an additional £20 million for the East Midlands County Combined Authority, that will enable councils to fix up to 7 million more potholes.
She said: “Potholes are a clear sign of decline in our infrastructure and for too long roads like those in Derbyshire have been left in a state that endangers and costs road users.
“It’s time for change and we are investing £1.6 billion to fix up to 7 million more potholes across England this year, including over £75 million for the East Midlands Combined Authority.
“JCB’s ‘pothole pro’ is one of the many great examples of using new technology to repair potholes faster and demonstrates how companies are harnessing new technology to repair potholes faster.”
Ben Rawding, JCB’s general manager, municipalities, said: “Last month’s announcement by the Department of Transport of £1.6 billion of funding for road repairs in England during 2025 is very welcome. Our appeal to the Minister will be for this funding to be spent wisely to ensure permanent long-term repairs become the priority for local authorities making best use of value-adding, productive technology such as the JCB pothole pro.”
