Hole lotta really like – parties split on patching Britain’s roads

Just before Christmas, drivers were given what looked like an attractive present by the government – the promise that £6 billion will be spent on fixing potholes over the next 6 years.

But when the wrapping paper was ripped off, it wasn’t quite the stunning package we were given to believe.

Old money

For a start, it wasn’t a fresh injection of cash into country’s beleaguered road ne2rk.

The funding for road repairs was originally unveiled in the 2013 Spending Review, and was announced (again) in December by Patrick McLoughlin, transport secretary.

The move prompted Labour MP Richard Burden to accuse the government of a “complete Christmas con.”

McLoughlin said the funds will be enough to repair 18 million potholes countrywide: “The £6 billion funding I am announcing today will put an end to short-term fixes and will mean we have committed £10 billion between 2010 and 2021.”

His mention of short-term fixes is intended to prevent further criticism of the government, which has previously come under fire for its quick-fix approach to road repairs.

Divvying up

Over £4.7 billion of the funds will be split between 115 local councils, with those that have the biggest road ne2rks getting the greatest amount of funding.

A further £575m will be available to councils to help maintain local roads, junctions, bridges and street lighting, but authorities will have to bid for a share of this.

There’s also another £578m which has been put aside for a new “incentive fund scheme” which will start in 2016. This money will be used to reward councils who can demonstrate that they have made cost-effective road improvements.

Half measures?

While £6 billion might sound like an awful lot of money it may not be anywhere near enough to solve the problem as some councils are facing bills of close to £100million to fix their crumbling carriageways.

A recent freedom of information (FoI) request from the Press Association found Leeds city council has the biggest backlog, with repairs estimated to cost somewhere between £90million and £100million, with Gloucestershire’s £86million repair bill and Islington’s £79million tab not too far behind.

The FoI request also gives an indication of the size of the task faced by local councils – even before this year’s bad weather sets in, Derbyshire has 1,110 potholes to repair, Plymouth 3,200 and Northumberland a whopping 6,600.

The idea that even £6billion may not be enough has also been supported by the Asphalt Industry Alliance (who knew?!?) which estimates an immediate one-off expenditure of £12 billion in England alone is needed to return our roads to a state we can be proud of.

Inflation will also have a big impact on the government’s planned expenditure on roads. Following today’s announcement, the shadow transport team @LabourTransport tweeted that the £976m-a-year allocated for local road maintenance is set to decline in real terms to £865m by 2020.

It also claimed that over 2,220 miles more of our local roads now need maintenance work compared to 2010 – further than going from Land’s End to John O’Groats.

Going to pot

There certainly seems to be some pretty damning evidence around to suggest that road repairs have been bottom of the agenda for far too long. According to the RAC, from 2012 to 2013 it saw a 67% increase in vehicles damaged by potholes.

A survey conducted by the motoring organisation earlier in 2014 found that 41% of drivers said the condition of local roads is a major concern – second only to the cost of fuel. And with the cost of fuel plummeting, it could soon be the biggest.

A further 68% said they wanted targeted local road improvements and 65% would like to see more maintenance of motorways and trunk roads.

Axle to grind

Poor roads aren’t just inconvenient, but can cause a huge amount of damage.

Research by the website Potholes.co.uk, an independent website to help motorists assist councils to improve the state of roads, found that the average repair bill for pothole-induced axle or suspension damage is £247. In contrast, it costs councils just £52 to repair one pothole.

They are also extremely dangerous. My local Kent roads are riddled with potholes that you have to swerve to avoid, and many have been left to deteriorate over a period of several years.

Road to ruin?

Michael Dugher MP, Labour’s shadow transport secretary, said: “Hard-pressed motorists and businesses are justifiably sick and tired of having their vehicles damaged because of Britain’s pothole crises.

“This Tory Government is all talk. Motorists have had enough of their failure and broken promises.”

I actually preferred his tweet to his official announcement. It read: “Govt announcement on roads seems to be: We’ve totally knackered the roads over the last 5 years. We might do something about it in the next 6.”

Can you dig it?

Only time will tell how big an impact the £6 billion funding will have over the next few years, but in the meantime you can do your bit to let councils know about the worst-affected areas.

You can report any potholes you find here, or you can use the ‘Fill That Hole’ iPhone app, which lets you take a photo of a pothole and combine this with GPS technology to pinpoint the exact location of the hazard.

The problem is then reported to the National Cycling Charity, which in turn contacts the right people on your behalf to get roads repaired.

Hole lotta really like – parties split on patching Britain’s roads

2016 Honda Pilot Spied: Longer, Significantly less Blocky, With a Lotta MDX

Future Automobiles

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The Pilot charts a course on the heading M-D-X.

• KGP PHOTOGRAPHY AND


• THE MANUFACTURER

What It Is: Honda’s lengthy-overdue replacement for the aging Pilot crossover, caught testing in what seems to be production-ready bodywork, complete with Honda badges. Of course, we cannot make out much of the sheetmetal due to the fact these prototypes snapped by our spy photographers are generously covered in loose black camouflage.

Why It Matters: The present Pilot has existed in far more or less the exact same standard form since 2009, with its only update coming in the 2012 model year, when Honda stripped the SUV of its bizarre-searching “cyborg” grille remedy. Nearly 6 years ago, the Pilot actually drove away from the competitors, getting had a considerable head-start off on most 3-row-crossover competitors. Just about everyone has now abandoned the truck-based body-on-frame format for the lighter and more carlike crossover blueprint, and Honda’s edge in the segment has dulled. Getting placed dead last in its most recent comparison test, the Pilot needs to re-establish Honda as the go-to brand for 3-row, mid-size crossovers.

Platform: In the past, the Pilot has shared its bones with Acura’s MDX luxury crossover, and the fundamental profile of this test mule indicates that will continue to be the case. There is a lot a lot more rear overhang on this prototype than on past Pilots, and the wheelbase-to-overhang relationships are really current-gen MDX. Underneath, what handful of suspension pieces are visible look really similar to those on the MDX, specifically at the rear. The roof appears longer, suggesting that the new Pilot’s third-row seats might offer you improved space and comfort.

Only a handful of specifics are visible by means of the Pilot’s camouflage, but from what we can see, the SUV’s styling will incorporate a mix of new and old cues. The taillights appear to mimic the squarish units on today’s model, even though the headlights have morphed into sleek, horizontal, Accord-like pieces. From exactly where we sit, it looks like there’s perhaps 1 grille opening as well several on the front finish, but we’ll require to wait for the camouflage to come off to pass final judgment. One particular thing’s for sure: The outgoing Pilot’s Automoblox look is dead and gone. It should for the 1st time in a even though, carry a familial resemblance to Honda’s smaller CR-V compact and HR-V subcompact crossovers.

Powertrain: Just as the Pilot these days provides only a single engine, so, also, will the new model. We don’t see something other than Honda’s latest direct-injected 3.5-liter V-6 providing motivation to the front wheels or—optionally—all 4 wheels. We anticipate the current Pilot’s AWD technique to continue in the new version of the crossover from a price standpoint, Acura’s Super Handling All-Wheel Drive with rear-axle torque-vectoring is most likely off-limits for Hondas.

When it comes to transmissions, nonetheless, Honda may have a slew of selections from the Honda/Acura components bin. The Pilot most likely will get the exact same 6-speed automatic utilised by the Accord V-6. On the other hand, fuel-economy specifications are acquiring tougher, so the ZF-constructed 9-speed automatic from the 2015 Acura TLX V-6 sedan ought to be mighty tempting for Honda item planners. In that car, the transmission bolts up to—you guessed it—the Accord’s 3.5-liter V-6. The only hitch is that Acura could potentially claim the ZF ’box for itself: The brand had to pony up significant cash to tweak the ubiquitous Honda V-6 block to accept the ZF transmission in the TLX. But any opportunity to amortize these expenses over more cars (such as the Pilot) would make sense.

Competition: Dodge Durango, Ford Explorer, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Nissan Pathfinder, Toyota Highlander.

Estimated Arrival and Value: Provided the bodywork beneath these Pilots’ coverup is production-prepared (or close to it), we can expect the 2016 Pilot to debut very soon. The Los Angeles auto show in the fall would line up nicely with an on-sale date in early 2015. Given the competitive nature of the mid-size-crossover segment, don’t anticipate any upward movement on the Pilot’s present $ 30,700 base cost.

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2016 Honda Pilot Spied: Longer, Significantly less Blocky, With a Lotta MDX