Force truckers to pay for pothole repairs, say motorists

Kwik-Fit says a majority of UK drivers think operators of heavy goods vehicles should pay towards repairing the country’s deteriorating road surfaces.

According to the firm’s latest PIT Report (Pothole Impact Tracker), 56% of drivers support a dedicated levy on HGVs for road maintenance, compared with only 17% who oppose it. The study, which tracks the annual cost of pothole damage, also revealed that 44% of drivers want a similar levy placed on delivery vans.

This comes amid growing concern that heavier vehicles contribute disproportionately to road degradation, with repair costs for drivers now totalling £1.7bn annually.

Almost half of respondents (48%) said owners of heavier cars should pay higher vehicle excise duty to reflect their impact on road wear. However, only 26% of all drivers surveyed would support paying more themselves, even if the funds were ringfenced for repairs in their local area.

Dan Joyce, operations director at Kwik-Fit, said: “The data shows that there is an increasingly pressing need to invest in the maintenance of our road network, but our new research highlights that there are no easy answers as to how this is funded. Motorists already feel that they are contributing enough, so it is understandable that they want the additional burden to be on the heavier vehicles believed to do the most damage to road surfaces.

“Of course, any costs placed on businesses through levies on HGVs or delivery vans are likely to be passed through to the end consumer, so it’s critical that potential measures are not looked at in isolation. And however the required funding is raised, what is vital is for there to be a long term strategic plan for road maintenance rather than short term patching.”