A FERMANAGH and South Tyrone MLA has ‘welcomed’ the news that approximately £1 million has been set aside by the Stormont Executive to address the ever-worsening pothole problems in the North.
Following his appointment as Minister for Infrastructure, Sinn Féin MLA John O’Down pledged the money to fix the roads which he said were in ‘poor states’ across the North.
Jemma Dolan, the MLA for Fermanagh and South Tyrone, is pleased with the latest financial package.
“I welcome the announcement by infrastructure minister John O’Dowd to help improve our roads and fix potholes,” said the Sinn Féin MLA.
“This is an important and quick intervention by the minister to invest in our roads, to address the backlog in road maintenance work and make our roads safer.”
Despite the significant financial pledge, there’s concern among residents in Fermanagh that the £1 million will not be enough to fix the issues with the roads.
New data analysed by CompareNI.com shows there were 9,733 potholes recorded on roads in the Fermanagh and Omagh District Council area in 2023, an increase of 90 per cent from the previous year.
This was significantly higher than any other council area – in comparison, Mid and East Antrim saw the second biggest increase in potholes which was 34 per cent.
It’s previously been reported that there was a sharp rise in issues reported to the Department for Infrastructure in 2023.
The organisation received 25,067 calls in 2022, compared to the 11,608 reported cases in 2022.
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