Councillors approve more than 100 priority road repairs for Caithness
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Councillors have reiterated that they will do as much as they can with the money available to them after plans were outlined for more than 100 road repair jobs across Caithness.
On Wednesday, members of Highland Council's Caithness Committee agreed a list of prioritised structural overlay/inlay works and surface-dressing schemes that will be funded out of their capital budget allocation for 2022/23.
The actual 2022/23 capital roads budget allocation for Caithness is still to be finalised – but, based on the previous financial year and analysis of road condition survey results, it is expected to be similar to the 2021/22 budget which was £1,202,581.
The report approved by members this week identified 114 current priority repair areas around the county.
The committee chairman, Councillor Raymond Bremner, said: “Following the spending in full of the allocated capital funding for this current year, we were pleased to receive the updated capital roads listing.
"We are absolutely committed to making sure that we do the same in the next financial year.
"We are aware of the importance attached to local roads by our rural communities and we need to ensure that we do as much as we can with the money that we get.
"We know that we don’t have all the funding we need to do everything we want, and reviewing the capital roads listing helps us allocate funding according to priority.
“It is important that as a committee we are as transparent as possible about the decisions made and the scale of the challenge before us. We need to make sure that our capital allocation is managed well to bring real benefits to the communities we represent.
"We will continue to do the best we can with the resources we have.”
The most expensive job on the list is an overlay scheme between Westerdale and Strathmore Lodge, on the Loch More road, with an estimated cost of £252,000. Another overlay project expected to cost a six-figure sum is on the Latheronwheel/Houstry route, at £153,000.
Number one on the priority list is an inlay scheme at Braal Terrace in Halkirk, with the cost estimated at £14,580. It was one of two locations highlighted by campaign group Caithness Roads Recovery this week as being in urgent need of improvement to reflect the aims of the council's Safer Routes to School strategy.
The group's co-founder Iain Gregory highlighted the extent of potholes and other deterioration at Braal Terrace – which gives access to Halkirk Primary School as well as to the local GP surgery – and at Glamis Road, Wick, leading to Noss Primary School.
In emails to MSPs and council chief executive Donna Manson, Mr Gregory argued that children, parents and the wider community "deserve better".
A Highland Council spokesperson said: "The prioritised capital list for 2022/23 was approved by the Caithness Committee on Wednesday. Braal Terrace is on the list, and officers are aware of Glamis Road and are currently programming works."
