West Midlands plans £12m for pothole repairs, low-carbon road surfaces

Six West Midlands councils—Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall, and Wolverhampton—are set to receive an additional £12 million to address thousands of potholes and resurface roads, with funding sufficient to fill 132,000 potholes. This new allocation follows an earlier £8 million grant secured by West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker and is drawn from the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement (CRSTS) fund, which Parker has reallocated to prioritize road maintenance. The funding will also support the application of pioneering low-carbon surface treatments developed and tested locally, aimed at extending road lifespan while reducing carbon emissions. Transport for West Midlands, part of the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), is leading trials of these innovative materials through the Centre of Excellence for Decarbonising Roads (CEDR). The move reflects a response to the region's poor road conditions, with Mayor Parker emphasizing the urgent need to improve safety and reduce repair costs for motorists. Approval from the Department for Transport is pending, and the overall road maintenance budget for the six councils has effectively doubled following this latest funding boost.