Britain’s Residents to Pay ‘Snow Tax’ to Fund Road Repairs

Many of Britain’s councils have introduced a new ‘snow tax’ to raise money for repairing potholes caused by the recent freezing weather.

The move comes amid estimations that councils need to spend over £1m ($1.5m) a day for potholes repairs, according to Telegraph.co.uk.

North Yorkshire County Council has imposed a 2.94% rise in the council tax to fund its maintenance bill.

According to Asphalt Industry Alliance, the trade body for road menders, the average cost of repairing potholes is £70 ($105) and with a pothole every 120 yards, the council would require 15 years and £10bn ($15bn) to repair them.

The wet weather along with freezing conditions destroys the tarmac, as ice seeps into the road, splitting the bitumen by enormous pressure.

The number of potholes in Britain has increased by 60% over the past two years, and the number of craters on Britain’s 246,000 miles of secondary routes has risen by 700,000 in the past two years, totalling over 1.6 million.