Cost of fixing all potholes on ‘national disgrace’ roads estimated at £18.6bn

The estimated cost of bringing pothole-plagued local roads in England and Wales up to scratch has risen to a record £18.6 billion, according to a new report, which branded the situation “a national disgrace”.

Research by the Asphalt Industry Alliance (AIA) found only 51% of the local road network is reported to be in good condition.

It claimed this shows extra investment to tackle potholes has failed to deliver “noticeable improvements”.

Roads are only being resurfaced, on average, once every 97 years.

A total of 1.9 million potholes were filled over the last year.

David Giles, who chairs the AIA, said noticeable improvements “lie a long way of”.

He said: “I think all road users would agree that the condition of our local roads has become a national disgrace.”

Total local road maintenance funding for England provided by the Government in the 2025/26 financial year was nearly £1.6 billion, representing a £500 million uplift compared with the previous 12 months.

A total of £7.3 billion has been announced for the four years up to the 2029/30 financial year.

Mr Giles said: “While local authority highway engineers told us they are cautiously optimistic that the increased funding will help them stem further decline, it is not the silver bullet that will clear the backlog of repairs any time soon.

“It will be some time before the impact of increased funding levels, if fully delivered, will be noticed by the public.”

He added that “the dial could be moved quicker” if the Government’s commitment to additional funding was front-loaded rather than “ramping up in the years to 2030”.

The AIA’s annual Alarm (annual local authority road maintenance) report is based on a survey of local authorities.

It found bringing local roads up to ideal conditions would cost £18.6 billion and take 12 years to complete.

Highway maintenance budgets for the 2025/26 financial year are reported to have increased by 17% compared with the previous 12 months, to an average of £30.5 million per authority.

More than half of that (54%) is being spent on the surface and structure of roads.

Potholes are often formed when rainfall enters cracks in the road and – when the temperature drops below 0C – freezes and expands, creating bigger cracks.

AA president Edmund King warned that “much more needs to be done to eradicate this plague of potholes”.

He added: “We have been seeing with our own eyes, and feeling with our wheels, how record wet weather linked to substandard roads has led to many local roads becoming patchwork obstacle courses.”

Tom Hunt, who chairs the Local Government Association’s inclusive growth committee, said the increase in funding for fixing roads is “positive” but “more action is needed for councils to bring roads up to scratch”.

Colin Brown, director of campaigns and political engagement at lobbying organisation Motorcycle Action Group, cited Government figures showing road surface conditions contribute to twice the proportion of killed or seriously injured motorcyclists compared with car occupants and cyclists.

He said: “Riders aren’t complaining about cracked roads because of the damage to their tyres – it’s the added risk of dying on them.”

A Department for Transport spokesperson said the report “rightly highlights the need to improve our roads” and the Government has raised the funding level to help councils “fix the pothole plague”.

He added: “We’re already seeing progress, with 15% more pothole‑prevention works carried out in 2025 compared to 2024 and reversing a nearly decade-long decline in road repair works.”