Motorists have responded in disbelief after Bedford Borough Council issued the results of a report that says Bedfordians drive on some of the best roads in the country.
The report by CompareTheMarket.com has found that Bedford Borough’s roads are some of the country’s best, that’s despite the Borough Council’s own data suggesting otherwise.
Taking data from the Government’s Road Indicator Report the insurance company found that 86% of the roads in Bedford Borough are in good condition.
This places the Borough as having the fifth best roads in the country. Redcar and Cleveland in the northeast are at the top, with 90.5% of their roads currently not in need of maintenance.
Bristol was found to have the worst, with only 78.5% of their roads in good condition.
Bedford’s elected Mayor Dave Hodgson (Liberal Democrats) praised the teams who carry out maintenance and repairs on the Borough’s roads.
“I would like to thank our Highways and Engineering Services teams and our dedicated Pot Hole Hit Squad, who are responsible for both the proactive and reactive maintenance of Bedford Borough Roads,” he said.
However, many motorists the Bedford Independent has spoken to have reacted in disbelief at the news.
“How bad must the rest of the country’s roads be if Bedford’s are amongst the best?” said one. Another commented, “Avon Drive is like a dirt track. It seems local roads are not prioritised for repairs.”
Council’s own data
Despite the national comparison, Borough Council’s own statistics seen by the Bedford Independent suggest the Borough Council’s release only tells half the story.
Previous comments from the Mayor have laid the blame on the former county council, with him claiming “the roads we inherited from the County Council were a complete mess and that is why we made it our priority to fix them.”
However, the Borough Council’s own road condition survey, which helps shape the Government’s Road Indicator Report, reveals little to no improvement in the condition of A to C roads since 2009.
- A Roads in good condition:
- 2008/09: 86.6%
- 2022/23: 86.6%
- B Roads in good condition:
- 2008/09: 80.3%
- 2022/23: 80.6%
- C Roads in good condition:
- 2008/09: 76.2%
- 2022/23: 82.8%
The condition of unclassified roads, however, has gotten worse.
60% of the roads in Bedford Borough are local roads used by local traffic. In 2009 just 4% of these roads needed repairs, this has now increased to 24%.
Cllr Jim Weir (Kempston Rural, Conservative) said there needs to be less bragging when things aren’t as good as the council claim.
“It is expensive keeping roads maintained, and there’s no criticism for those with the task ahead of fixing them, said Cllr Weir.
“But, what winds me up is when the Mayor comes out with statements that blame the county council when roads have gotten worse since then”
“We need to do as much as we can to get the roads sorted so don’t brag about them being brilliant when they’re not and some have got worse.”
Cllr Weir also told the Bedford Independent that a Turvey resident has been complaining to the Mayor about the state of the A428 running through the village since 2014 but nothing has been done.
“It’s in a terrible state,” added Cllr Weir. “3.5 million vehicles use that road every year, 169,000 of them HGVs. The Mayor has said they’re going to fix it since 2014 but nothing has happened yet.”
The Mayor did highlight the issues with extreme weather on the roads as the reason why so many may seem to be in disrepair at the moment.
“With a higher number of potholes than usual this year due to extreme weather conditions in December, I encourage anyone that discovers a road problem to help us and report it as soon as they can, so that it can be investigated.”
People who are concerned about a pothole or other road issue can report it on the at the council’s website.
Bedford Borough Council says dangerous road problems are inspected within 24 hours and less urgent within ten working days.
