Increased fund from Government to fix flood-battered roads in West Berkshire

Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin announced this week that the funds would be made available to ensure the rapid repair of roads that had been left battered by the severe weather that tore across the south of England from December to February.
An extra £103.5m is also being added to the £900m budget that had already been confirmed to assist councils is repairing roads before the severe weather hit.
The final amount that West Berkshire Council is to receive is not likely to be confirmed until later this week, however initial estimates by the council show that repairs to road surfaces alone is expected to cost in the region of £1.7million.
However, the total cost to repair all infrastructure caused by the flooding in the district has not yet been confirmed.
The heavy downpours left around 150 homes in West Berkshire flooded, forced businesses to close and caused disruption to local roads and transport services.
Several roads remain closed, including Spray Lane, Inkpen; Park Lane, Hamstead Marshall; Brock Lane Bucklebury; Aldworth Road, Compton and Main Street, West Ilsley, while motorists are forced to negotiate around large potholes and damaged road surfaces on several key roads across the district.
The A339 from Kingsclere to Headley is also to be closed in two phases between March 13 and April 3 for road resurfacing to repair deep potholes caused by the severe weather.
Council spokeswoman Peta Stoddart-Crompton said: “Apart from the surface damage, the long-term effects caused by damage to the road foundations will only be known when the flood water subsides.
“Repairs have been carried out across the district where the flood waters have receded and it is dry enough to do so.”
All councils will be required to publish information on their websites by August to show where the funds provided by central government have been spent.
The funds are due to be transferred to local councils by the end of the week to ensure that work is completed by the school summer holidays.
However, the shadow portfolio holder, Keith Woodhams (Lib Dem, Thatcham west), said that the money would only be beneficial if the council ensured that work carried out by road maintenance contractors was up to standard, following complaints that had been made to him by local residents on the quality of previous repairs.
He said: “We welcome the money from government but my confidence that the money will be spent wisely and give value for money for the taxpayer is extremely low based on the observations given to me by local residents.”