Council is tracking the number of potholes it repairs and will have contractors patrolling known trouble spots over the coming winter months when more are expected.

Infrastructure and Open Spaces Group Manager Neil McCann said 613 potholes were repaired around the district in June.

“That actually compares well with June in 2023, when 1206 potholes were repaired. We’ve made a big effort in the past two years to rehabilitate or repair problem spots and it’s paying off.

“For the whole of 2023, we repaired 8406 potholes around the district, compared to 12,607 in 2022.”

Most of the potholes are on rural roads and Council’s maintenance contractor HEB undertakes regular patrols of areas where potholes are most likely to develop or be reported. Potholes are patched and permanent repairs scheduled for the warmer months when dry weather is needed for the materials to bond.

Mr McCann said some of Council’s sealed rural roads were formed and sealed at a time when there was less traffic and heavy vehicles.

“We are rehabilitating and repairing these roads as funding allows, digging out the failed areas and constructing a new pavement on top of the existing road. This lessens the chance of potholes in the future.

“We maintain one of the largest roading networks in New Zealand, with 1515km of sealed roads, 1102km of unsealed roads and 186 bridges, and if people see potholes on them, they should report them to Council or use the Snap Send Solve app to bring them to our attention.”

Council also maintains just over 230km of footpaths, adding to the network as the residential areas grow.

A new footpath on Racecourse Road in Ashburton is ready for the final sealing stage, while a newly-reformed footpath linking Geoff Geering Drive and Braebrook has been completed recently and is open to the public.