Expect even more potholes on UK roads after summer heatwaves, says RAC
Summary
The UK’s roads are expected to have more potholes after a record hot summer. Heat damages the road surface, creating cracks that turn into potholes, adding to damage caused by wet weather earlier in the year.Key Facts
- Heat from strong sunlight and high temperatures damages the bitumen that holds the road surface, making it crack.
- Cracks allow traffic and rain to create potholes.
- Last winter’s heavy rain left only half of the roads in England and Wales in good condition.
- The summer’s heatwaves with temperatures over 38°C worsened road damage.
- Climate change made these high temperatures 130 times more likely to happen.
- Road damage is just one example of how extreme weather is harming UK infrastructure.
- UK councils will get a record £1.6 billion budget for roads in 2025-26 and £7.3 billion allocated for improvements by the end of the decade.
- Local councils must now prove they are working on long-term pothole repairs or risk losing up to a third of their road funding.
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