Survey examines the condition of London’s roads

Approximately 15% of London’s roads are likely to require maintenance in the next 12 months, according to a new report.

The Asphalt Industry Alliance (AIA) commissions an annual survey of highways departments in all local authorities in England and Wales to build a picture of the general condition of local roads.

The 2021 Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance (ALARM) survey was published on 31 March and deems 14% of the Capital’s roads to be in ‘poor condition’ – meaning they are likely to require maintenance within the next year.

Nearly two-thirds (64%) of roads are described as “in a good state of repair”, while on the remaining 23% “some deterioration is apparent which should be investigated to determine the optimum time for planned maintenance”.

The ALARM survey also looks at highway maintenance budgets. It shows local authorities in London saw budgets rise by 1.2% in 2020/21.

However, budgets reported are still lower than they were two years ago – leading the AIA to warn a ‘legacy of inconsistent funding’ is still preventing local authorities from being able to provide long term, cost effective maintenance improvements for local roads.

The survey notes that the average one-time catch-up cost required to clear carriageway maintenance backlog, per authority, now stands at £27.6m – up from £24.3m last year.


01 April 2021