Hawkesbury City Council has received $11.5 million in pothole repair funding thanks to the State Government's Regional and Local Roads Repair Program.
This financial year, Hawkesbury City Council expects to spend $1 million on pothole filling alone – the most Council has ever spent in a single year. This is on top of the estimated $240 million cost in repairs to flood damaged roads in the Hawkesbury, and the routine roads renewal and upgrade program of $22.5 million.
The funding follows a joint campaign involving Hawkesbury City Council and fellow Greater Sydney and regional councils in late 2022 for financial assistance to tackle the persistent problem of potholes following three years of wet weather and flooding. The program will allocate $500 million to councils right across NSW.
The Mayor of Hawkesbury, Councillor Sarah McMahon, welcomed the funding and thanked her fellow Greater Sydney and regional mayors for their joint advocacy.
"This is a fantastic outcome. Sydney and the Hawkesbury have been suffering from the worst potholes in living memory, and it is local motorists that have borne the burden," Mayor McMahon said.
"A simple drive to school or the shops shouldn't be an exercise in pothole dodging or require a trip to the mechanic to repair a tyre or suspension.
"The challenges all our councils face in tackling the pothole problem are threefold – financing, the availability of road repair contractors, and the availability of road repair materials," she said.
"This funding goes a long way to solving the financial part of the pothole equation.
"Council's roads and infrastructure recovery teams have been working very hard over the past few years repairing our damaged roads.
"We know there is a long way to go but Council is committed to ensuring that motorists have safe roads to drive on as quickly as possible."
Hawkesbury City Council is also committed to keeping the community updated on its road maintenance and repairs programs, including an interactive map. View the Renewing Hawkesbury's Roads information hub at www.hawkesbury.nsw.gov.au/emergency/renewing-hawkesburys-roads
