Pioneering pothole machine trialled in Staffordshire

A machine designed by legendary Staffordshire digger maker JCB to help speed up pothole repairs is being trialled in the county, following a previous trial last year.

The Pothole Pro works by cutting, planing and sweeping the road defects before it can be filled with bitumen.

The machine will be trialled on a number of different sites in East Staffordshire, Staffordshire Moorlands and Stafford Borough for a fortnight.

David Williams, Cabinet Member for Highways said: “We are always looking for opportunities to trial new machinery, so we can repair our roads as quickly and as thoroughly as possible with the least amount of disruption to Staffordshire motorists.

“As part of our £15.5 million investment into Staffordshire’s highways, we will be looking to trial the Staffordshire designed machine on our own roads and seeing how it performs on variety of different surfaces and situations.”

A JCB spokesman said : “The JCB Pothole Pro is true innovation. It’s what you get when talented designers and engineers based in JCB factories in Staffordshire come together to really tackle a difficult problem – how to deal with the scourge of potholes on our nation’s roads.

“Since its launch, the JCB Pothole Pro has been used by local authorities across the country with great results, proving its worth as a quick and cost-effective solution to the problem. We’re delighted it will now be put through its paces in our home county of Staffordshire.”