LIB Dems on the county council are demanding a special task to tackle road, footpath and cycleway repairs.

Cambs Times: Cllr David Jenkins.Cllr David Jenkins. (Image: Archant)

Councillor Susan van de Ven , the Lib Dem transport spokesman, said: “It is not enough to simply understand the scale of the problem, or to invest in repairs for a fraction of the work needing attention.

“We need a strategy that looks at whole problem in the long term.”

She said: “Under 16 years of Tory control, the county council has under-invested in the highways network and allowed our roads to deteriorate on a scale that is now out of control.

“After the Lib Dems fought to get the Tory administration to address this issue, the county council borrowed £90 million over five years to deal with some of the problems. We welcome this. But the council has a responsibility to get to grips with the overall problem.”

She said the fear was the county’s roads are crumbling and Lib Dems want a task force of officers to work out a financial strategy to tackle them.

Councillor David Jenkins, Lib Dem spokesman for planning, environment and enterprise said: “We have to remember that this is a countywide problem. We must invest to solve issues across the county not just focus on Cambridge centric solutions.”

Cllr van de Ven added; “The county is growing fast with some exciting projects in the pipeline but at the same time our roads are crumbling.

“How can we build new developments at Northstowe and elsewhere, improve the A14 and put in place other infrastructure improvements without addressing the condition of our ordinary roads and pavements?

The Lib Dems have submitted a motion which will go before the next full county council meeting on July 16.