Surge in UK road resurfacing hints at progress against potholes

A 9% year-on-year boost in road surface dressing volumes in the UK hints at the potential for improved future road conditions in the UK, according to new data.

The Road Emulsion Association (REA) has reported an increase in the manufacturing, sale, and use of bitumen emulsions for surface dressing since last year, which it says is a positive sign following the lowest reported volumes on record the year before.

Approximately 38.5 million square metres of surface dressing was applied over the surface treatments season in 2024.

While the REA welcomed the green shoots of recovery, it said the upturn is still “significantly below” the typical volumes of surface dressing used before the decline it has experienced over the last 12 years.

The reduced bitumen emulsion volumes and reduction in surface dressing carried out by local highway authorities has, in the view of the REA, "contributed considerably to the increase in potholes across the local highway network".

Kevin Maw, REA consultant and secretary, said: “This is positive news for the highways industry and road users.

“While we have a long way to go to get back to the volumes of bitumen emulsions produced in the years up to 2012 to enable over 60 million square metres per annum of surface dressing, this shows that the trend has started to turn, which is encouraging.

“We hope this continues. It could be a sign of market recovery and a change in the focus among local highway authorities who are investing more in preventative maintenance, which is what we have been calling for as part of our campaign, Futureproofing our local roads.”

Chris Green, head of highway operations at Leicestershire County Council, explained that resurfacing is “the most cost effective way for local authorities to maintain roads and prevent potholes”.

He added: “Surface dressing helps improve the condition of our roads across Leicestershire, saving the council money by proactively repairing surfaces, which helps to prevent more costly repairs further down the line.”

RAC head of policy Simon Williams welcomed the news that more roads were surface dressed between April and September this year than in 2023, as this should prevent thousands of potholes appearing. 

“We hope the preventative road maintenance tide has well and truly turned as last year’s surface dressing figure dipped to a 12-year low,” he said. 

“The fact so little surface dressing was carried out last year helps explain why drivers are so angry and frustrated with potholes, something we’ve seen very clearly seen in research for this year’s RAC Report on Motoring with 56% of drivers listing the poor state of local roads as their number-one motoring concern.

Surface dressing seals roads from the damaging ingress of water, extending their lives by preventing potholes appearing in the first place.

“We’ve also noticed the Government heeding our call for councils to do more preventative maintenance,“ he added.  

“We believe greater use of surface dressing and other preventative maintenance treatments can finally bring an end to the degradation of our much-relied-on local roads.“