Summer roads resurfacing programme confirmed for 2022

Efforts to improve the condition of commuter routes and residential streets across Darlington are set to continue this summer, with a £3m programme of resurfacing, recycling and micro-asphalting.

With the state of roads often raised as a key issue by residents, the council has again dedicated funds to an ambitious scheme of repairs and future-proofing schemes, with the aim of creating smoother journeys and fewer potholes.

Regular monitoring of the condition of road surfaces in Darlington means the highways team can make evidence-based decisions about the programme of works each year.

The maintenance budget of £2.52m for 2022/23 will be used on resurfacing schemes, while an additional £480,000 will be spent on a widespread programme of micro-asphalting, which seals a road surface and prevents damaging water ingress, extending its life by up to 10 years.

The 2022 programme will include 11 resurfacing schemes covering 3.6km of road length, including Neasham Road, Newton Lane and Coniscliffe Road.

The more eco-friendly in-situ recycling process – which recycles the existing carriageway material already present, so saving on the cost of landfill and new materials used in the scheme, as well as drastically reducing the number of truck movements – will be carried out on Burnside Road and Prior Street.

And a recycling overlay scheme, which will use approximately 2,000 tonnes of road plannings saved from some of last year’s schemes, will be carried out on Newbiggin Lane.

Towards the end of summer, a micro-asphalt programme will be carried out on 46 streets across the town, a total 9.5km of road length.  

Councillor Andy Keir, cabinet member for local services, said: “Residents tell us that the condition of the roads is one of their key priorities, which is why we continue to focus our efforts on a targeted programme each year to improve road surfaces.

“We’re continuing to see improvements in the number of potholes reported each year, which shows that the work being done to ‘future-proof’ the network is paying off.

“Our commitment to making the process of resurfacing more eco-friendly and meeting our climate change pledge continues, with the use of the recycling machine and also the use of recycled plannings collected from other projects, a brilliant idea by our highways team which proved successful last year.”

The full list of schemes for 2022/23 will be available at https://www.darlington.gov.uk/transport-and-streets/highways/highway-schemes/ which also includes a link with more information about the micro-asphalting programme.