Scotland faces thousands of potholes which could take 50 years to fix

Scottish Liberal Democrat communities spokesperson Willie Rennie MSP has today revealed the “dire state” of Scotland’s roads after research by his party found that motorists have lodged over 7,000 pothole claims since 2022, with one council claiming it could take more than 50 years to fix its maintenance backlog.

Responses from 26 councils to freedom of information requests by the Scottish Liberal Democrats uncovered that there have been 7,524 pothole claims since 2022. These represent claims that motorists have made to the local authority for damage done to their vehicle by a pothole.

In Dumfries and Galloway, where there were 810 claims lodged in 2022-23, more than half of claims were paid out. In the same council in 2023-24, there were 802 claims. 248 have already resulted in pay outs, with 442 cases still open.

In Fife in 2022-23, motorists lodged 334 pothole claims and 85% of these claims were paid out. In the same year in Glasgow, there were 593 pothole claims, 66% of which were paid out.

The Scottish Liberal Democrat research also found that at least 27 councils are experiencing a backlog with road maintenance issues, with some councils reporting that it would take many years to resolve existing issues.

Comhairle nan Eilean Siar said it would take 52 years to clear its road maintenance backlog. Clackmannanshire gave an estimate of 25+ years, Dumfries and Galloway 16.9 years, Shetland 12.5 years, West Lothian 10 years, Renfrewshire 8 years and Orkney 12-18 months.

Scottish Liberal Democrat communities spokesperson Willie Rennie MSP said:

“Under this SNP government, potholes have become a plague on our roads. Motorists should not have to spend their journeys hitting potholes or dangerously swerving around an obstacle course of tarmac craters.

“For many years, the SNP have slashed funding for councils and left communities to muddle through. In some parts of the country, people are waiting half a century for existing issues to be resolved. We need to end this postcode lottery because it poses a very real risk to safety on the roads.

“Scottish Liberal Democrats have set out plans to fix Scotland’s crumbling infrastructure, including cavernous potholes. That starts by better supporting local authorities and giving them the fair deal they deserve.”  

Additional Information:

You can find a full spreadsheet setting out councils’ responses here