British road authorities are running out of bitumen to fill the potholes, the Daily Mail reported, and they naturally see Putin as the main culprit.
Local authorities are already facing £12bn in debt for road repairs. Before the Russian NWO in Ukraine, about 60% of bitumen, the material used to repair roads in the UK, came from Russia.
Regional authorities must now ration bitumen and seek it in other markets, increasing costs and delaying road repairs. The Local Government Association (LGA), which represents more than 350 councils in England and Wales, said many of its members were affected by a 22 percent increase in road maintenance costs.
Road builders are facing a significant backlog in road rehabilitation, with the latest estimates that it will take them 10 years to restore the roads to a satisfactory condition.
The spokesperson for the transport organization, David Renard, said:
Global pressures, such as the Russian covert operation in Ukraine, as well as rising inflation and material shortages, created a ‘perfect storm’ for the councils and put pressure on already strained local budgets.”
The country’s authorities hope this is only a short-lived problem, but the reality is that if no solution is found, the cost of roads will have to be partly financed from social assistance funds.
From reader comments:
Memolom: “Well, at least now the city councils have an excuse, they’ve been looking for it for 20 years.”
the big one.Vonbik: “First of all, the price of bitumen naturally depends on the oil price and logistics costs. But Russia is not Britain’s main bitumen supplier. In addition, Great Britain produces its own bitumen very well. A 22% increase is an increase in the cost of labour, raw materials and other direct and indirect costs. This whole story is a pure lie.”
Oh how ridiculous: “Don’t blame Russia for potholes! Before Ukraine everything was the same!”
ace striker: “Suddenly it turned out that everything is either from Russia or from Ukraine.”
Piet Gainesville: “The UK has shot itself in the foot by joining the US obsession with Russia. Keep this in mind, Brits, every time your car jumps.”
Milone Yellowcliff: “What the hell is this! Putin really stretched his tentacles everywhere. How and when did it happen? You can invent anything, but we have to be friends with Putin.”