Bad roads take £4bn toll on UK economy

About 60 per cent of people asked believe that highways in the region are poorly maintained – the nation's highest figure.

Respondents are suggesting that the condition of roads would affect where they shopped and lived, meaning Yorkshire could be economically hampered if surfaces are not improved.

And, with councils facing a 26 per cent cut in funding, the 9.5bn backlog in fixing potholes is expected to grow.

Figures released in September showed that on average there was a shortfall in structural road budgets of 8.83m per authority in the Yorkshire region, while the national figure was 5.6m.

The new results are published in a YouGov survey of more than 2,000 people, commissioned by the Asphalt Industry Alliance who say their findings illustrate the widespread concern about the state of local roads.

Almost half of all respondents thought that roads in England and Wales were not up to scratch, but that figure jumped to six in ten people in Yorkshire and the Humber.

Only 17 per cent of those questioned thought that improvements to local roads had been made in the last five years, with 56 per cent saying that conditions had deteriorated.

The report said that people would make important choices about where they spent their time based on how bad the roads surrounding the area were.

More than a quarter said the condition of roads affected where they did their food shopping, 39 per cent said it impacted on where they went for a day trip, and 45 per cent would be put off buying a home because of potholes in the roads.

"These findings are important because it is clear that some destinations will be missing out on expenditure not because they lack attraction but because the roads leading to them are poorly maintained," the study warned.

Businesses flagged up production delays, damage repairs and wasted staff time as knock-on effects of poor roads, with the yearly costs estimated at 13,600 for each small and medium enterprise asked.

Colin Loveday, Chairman of Asphalt Industry Alliance, said: "This report demonstrates that there is a sound economic argument for properly funding local road maintenance as a key measure to help the economy emerge from recession."

But Mr Loveday said councillors should keep providing money for highways maintenance. He added: "Those local authorities that choose to prioritise road maintenance are choosing to protect their local economies, support local employers and improve the quality of life for residents."

Stephen Alambritis, Federation of Small Businesses spokesman, said that consumers would

be continue to be hit in the wallet if road surfaces remained poor.

He said: "Small businesses suffering an increase in costs as a result of increased journey times and increased fuel costs will have no option but to try and pass those costs onto the consumer.

"Business location decisions will also be influenced by better roads; jobs move with businesses and this cannot be the correct way forward."

Figures obtained by the Yorkshire Post last month, suggested it would take nine years to clear all the necessary maintenance backlog, including pothole repairs, resurfacing and other works, in the region.

Councils across the region have prepared for the approaching winter, which last year cost the region around 11m in road repairs, by stock-piling thousands of tonnes of gritting salt.