Source
Department for Transport — Local road maintenance ratings 2025 to 2026
amberOverall|amber Conditiongreen Spendamber Best Practice
Bury: One in Five Residential Roads Still in RED
Bury Council spends more than double its DfT capital allocation and earns a GREEN spend scorecard — yet the overall rating is AMBER because road condition is AMBER. Unclassified roads — 79% of the 629km network — hit 35.2% RED in 2022 and still sit at 20.6%, while B and C roads in RED nearly doubled in two years.
20.6%
Unclassified roads in RED condition (2024)
Roughly 103km of Bury's residential and estate roads — on a network where the council surveys only half of U-roads each year.
What The Condition Data Shows
Five years of condition data from Bury's own transparency report — classified roads slipping while spend stays GREEN
The network (629.2km total roads)
62.1km
A roads (9.9%)
67.3km
B and C roads (10.7%)
499.8km
Unclassified (79.4%)
Nearly four-fifths of Bury's carriageway network is unclassified — the roads where most pothole damage claims originate.
A-roads (62.1km): RED rising
| Year | Red | Amber | Green |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 3.7% | 24.3% | 72% |
| 2022 | 4% | 20.6% | 75.4% |
| 2024 | 6.3% | 20.7% | 73% |
A-road RED condition has risen 70% since 2020 (3.7% → 6.3%). Main routes are not immune.
B and C roads (67.3km): sharp decline since 2022
| Year | Red | Amber | Green |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 3.8% | 24% | 72.2% |
| 2021 | 2.8% | 18.8% | 78.4% |
| 2022 | 2.6% | 16.7% | 80.7% |
| 2023 | 6.2% | 18.5% | 75.4% |
| 2024 | 7.2% | 21.8% | 71% |
B/C roads in RED nearly tripled in two years (2.6% → 7.2%). Good-condition B/C roads fell from 80.7% to 71% — a loss of nearly ten percentage points in green condition since 2022.
And This Is The Well-Funded Version
£3.7m
DfT capital allocation 2025/26
£7.9m
Projected capital spend 2025/26
75%
Estimated preventative share
Bury spends more than double its DfT allocation, bolstered by £3.3m per year from the council's own resources plus CRSTS funding — and local road condition is still AMBER. The problem is not the chequebook alone.
The 499.8km Residential Network
79% of Bury's roads are unclassified — surveyed at 50% coverage each year
| Year | U-roads in RED condition |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 15.1% |
| 2021 | 28.3% |
| 2022 | 35.2% |
| 2023 | 21.4% |
| 2024 | 20.6% |
The Two-Year Survey Cycle
Bury's transparency report states it surveys 50% of the unclassified network annually, with full network coverage over two years. Unclassified roads are surveyed in only one direction using Coarse Visual Inspection (CVI) by accredited surveyors.
At 20.6% RED in 2024, roughly 103km of residential roads were in the worst condition category — down from a peak of 35.2% (approximately 176km) in 2022, but still one road in five.
CVI vs SCANNER
A, B and C roads are assessed using SCANNER laser technology, with surveys undertaken in opposite directions each year so that after two years the council has data for both directions of travel.
U-roads rely on a visual drive-by survey covering half the network per year. The methodology difference matters when comparing condition across road classes — and when arguing what the council reasonably knew about your street.
"We survey 50% of the Unclassified network annually. Unclassified roads are surveyed in only one direction and we have full network coverage over two years."
— Bury Council Local Highways Maintenance Transparency Report 2025
Why This Matters For Section 58
To rely on the Section 58 defence, a council must show it had a reasonable system for knowing the condition of its roads. For Bury's unclassified network, ask:
- • Was your road in the 50% surveyed the year your damage occurred?
- • If 20.6% of U-roads were RED at the last survey, what was done about yours?
- • Does a CVI drive-by in one direction detect the pothole that damaged your vehicle?
- • How does risk-based reactive inspection interact with a road last condition-surveyed up to two years ago?
A council cannot claim detailed knowledge of 500km of residential roads when it condition-surveys only half of them each year — and prioritises reactive repairs by risk.
54,680 Potholes in Five Years
The scale of reactive repair tells you how many defects this network produces
| Year | Potholes filled (estimate) |
|---|---|
| 2020/21 | 11,451 |
| 2021/22 | 10,327 |
| 2022/23 | 11,738 |
| 2023/24 | 10,963 |
| 2024/25 | 10,201 |
| Five-year total | 54,680 |
~30 Potholes a Day, Every Day
Averaged over five years, Bury fills an estimated 30 potholes per day across its 629.2km network. For 2025/26 the council plans to fill approximately 10,000 more. A network producing defects at that rate is one where potholes routinely form between inspections — exactly the scenario where prior reports and photographic evidence decide claims.
Risk-Based Reactive Repairs
Pothole repairs are identified through routine highway safety inspections that adopt a risk-based approach, prioritising defects posing the greatest risk to road users. Not every pothole is treated equally — lower-risk defects may wait, which is directly relevant to whether the council can show it acted reasonably on yours.
"Day to day reactive maintenance activities, such as pothole repairs, are identified through our system of routine highway safety inspections. These inspections adopt a risk-based approach, prioritising repairs to those defects which pose the greatest risk to road users."
— Bury Council Local Highways Maintenance Transparency Report 2025
£30 Million Borrowed — Condition Still AMBER
Bury's own account of how it funds maintenance — and what it prioritises
| Year | DfT allocation | Capital spend | Revenue spend | Preventative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025/26 (proj.) | £3,692,000 | £7,926,829 | £2,590,300 | 75% |
| 2024/25 | £4,098,200 | £7,520,436 | £2,376,006 | 75% |
| 2023/24 | £5,691,320 | £9,419,071 | £3,104,749 | 75% |
| 2022/23 | £3,593,000 | £6,697,600 | £3,336,763 | 75% |
| 2021/22 | £3,435,000 | £5,951,000 | £1,797,923 | 75% |
| 2020/21 | £3,555,413 | £6,245,396 | £3,977,733 | 75% |
"Bury Council recognises the importance of optimal maintenance practices to ensure the vital highway assets that connect people, businesses and the services the council provides are serviceable and has committed to invest an additional £30 million for highway maintenance activities over and above any budget allocated by the DfT for the financial years 2017/18 to end of 2025/26."
— Bury Council Local Highways Maintenance Transparency Report 2025
2024/25 Treatment Delivered
- • Surface dressed approximately 9 miles (~85,000 sq m)
- • Resurfaced 4.8km of A/B/C roads plus 6.5km of unclassified roads
2025/26 plans: surface dress 7.5 miles, resurface 1.25km A/B/C plus 8.5km unclassified, and fill approximately 10,000 potholes.
Best Practice AMBER
Unlike councils with GREEN best-practice scorecards, Bury is AMBER on best practice. The council cites innovation trials (jet patching, thermal patching, slurry patching) and a geospatial asset management database — but the DfT rating suggests room for improvement in how effectively those practices translate to network outcomes.
From 2026/27, PAS 2161 will replace the current three-category SCANNER/CVI system with five categories — another methodology shift to watch when comparing year-on-year data.
Claiming Against a Well-Funded AMBER Council
Honest assessment: Bury invests heavily — here's how that changes your approach
What Works In The Council's Favour
- ✓ GREEN spend scorecard — capital spend more than double DfT allocation
- ✓ £30m additional borrowed investment since 2017/18
- ✓ Consistent 75% preventative / 25% reactive split
- ✓ Documented safety inspection regime with risk-based prioritisation
- ✓ SCANNER surveys on all A/B/C roads annually (both directions over two years)
Expect a structured Section 58 defence on main classified roads. Generic claims will struggle.
What Works In Yours
- ✗ AMBER condition — B/C RED nearly tripled from 2.6% to 7.2% since 2022
- ✗ 20.6% of U-roads still in RED — ~103km of residential network
- ✗ 79% of network surveyed at 50% coverage per year on U-roads
- ✗ 54,680 pothole fills in five years — defects outpace inspection cycles
- ✗ AMBER best practice — DfT scorecard below top tier
- ✗ Risk-based reactive repairs mean lower-priority defects can wait
The Winning Strategy Here Is Specificity
Against a council with GREEN spend and £30m of borrowed investment, your claim lives or dies on the specific defect:
- • Prior reports of the same pothole (FixMyStreet, council reports) — proof of actual notice
- • Photos showing the defect's size, depth and visible age (weathered edges, previous patching)
- • The road's class — on a U-road, the 50%-per-year survey gap is your strongest structural argument
- • Whether risk-based prioritisation left your defect untreated despite visible deterioration
Mac builds exactly this case: he searches for prior reports, assesses your photo evidence, and cites Bury's own transparency data where it helps you.
Hit a Pothole in Bury?
A well-funded council demands a well-built claim. £35 for a professional claim pack.
DIY Claim
- • Submit photos and invoices
- • Use generic template letter
- • No U-road survey-gap argument
- • No prior-report search
- • No risk-prioritisation challenge
Professional Claim Pack
- ✅ B/C road decline documented
- ✅ 50%-per-year U-road survey gap argued
- ✅ 54,680 pothole fills in five years cited
- ✅ Prior reports searched and attached
- ✅ Section 58 rebuttal tailored to Bury
No percentage fees. You keep 100% of any compensation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Bury spends more than double its DfT allocation — can I still claim?
Yes. The DfT Spend scorecard is GREEN, but your claim turns on whether the specific defect that damaged your vehicle was reasonably inspected and repaired under Section 58 — not on aggregate spending. Bury's overall rating is AMBER because road condition is AMBER: B and C roads in RED nearly doubled from 2.6% in 2022 to 7.2% in 2024, and 20.6% of unclassified roads remain in RED condition.
What if my pothole was on a residential or unclassified road?
Unclassified roads make up 499.8km — 79% of Bury's 629.2km network. The council surveys only 50% of U-roads each year, achieving full network coverage over two years. At the 2024 survey, 20.6% of U-roads were in RED condition — roughly 103km of residential streets and estate roads. If your incident fell in a year when your road was not surveyed, the council's own condition data may not cover it.
U-road RED condition peaked at 35.2% in 2022 — does the drop to 20.6% weaken my claim?
No — one in five residential roads is still in RED condition at the 2024 survey. A drop from the 35.2% peak in 2022 does not mean your specific defect was reasonably known about or repaired — especially on a U-road that may only be condition-surveyed every other year under Bury's 50%-per-annum CVI cycle.
Does Bury's risk-based inspection approach strengthen its Section 58 defence?
It gives the council something to point to — reactive repairs are identified through "routine highway safety inspections" that "adopt a risk-based approach, prioritising repairs to those defects which pose the greatest risk to road users." But risk-based prioritisation means lower-priority roads and defects can wait. If your pothole was not treated as high-risk, that is an argument about whether the inspection regime was reasonable for your road — not an automatic win for either side.
Bury fills around 11,000 potholes a year — does that mean the roads are fixed?
The council filled an estimated 10,201 potholes in 2024/25 and plans to fill approximately 10,000 in 2025/26 — roughly 28 every day. Over five years the published estimates total 54,680 repairs on a network where condition data shows deterioration on B/C roads and one in five U-roads still in RED. Reactive filling is evidence of ongoing failure, not proof your defect was caught.
Data sources: Department for Transport — Local Road Maintenance Ratings 2025 to 2026 | Bury Council Local Highways Maintenance Transparency Report 2025–2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Reusable evidence record
Council rating evidence and provenance
Rating period: 2025-2026 · Reviewed 19 July 2026
Observed DfT fact
Overall AMBER; condition AMBER; spend GREEN; best practice AMBER.
Cautious interpretation
This is network-level context. The rating does not determine liability for a particular incident or establish what was known about a specific defect.
Correction status: No correction recorded.