WITH pothole damage to vehicles on the up, millions of the nation’s drivers believe road repair funding should come from specific groups of vehicles.

Research published by Kwik Fit, which tracks the annual cost of damage to the nation’s vehicles from pothole impact, found that the majority of drivers think operators of heavy goods vehicles should make a bigger contribution to repairs.

The company’s research found that 56 per cent of drivers say that HGV operators should pay an additional levy which is ring-fenced for road surface repairs.

The leading automotive servicing and repair company found that many drivers also believe that there should be an additional ring-fenced levy placed on delivery vans.

Kwik Fit published its PIT Report (Pothole Impact Tracker) 2025 earlier this year. This revealed that over the last year, the country’s drivers paid £1.7-billion to repair vehicle damage caused by potholes.

According to the Asphalt Industry Alliance, local authorities estimate that it would take £16.8-billion to tackle the backlog of road repairs.

Dan Joyce, operations director at Kwik Fit, said: “The data shows that there is an increasingly pressing need to invest in the maintenance of our road network, but our new research highlights that there are no easy answers as to how this is funded.

“Motorists already feel that they are contributing enough so it is understandable that they want the additional burden to be on the heavier vehicles believed to do the most damage to road surfaces.

“Of course, any costs placed on businesses through levies on HGVs or delivery vans are likely to be passed through to the end consumer, so it’s critical that potential measures are not looked at in isolation.

“And however the required funding is raised, what is vital is for there to be a long term strategic plan for road maintenance rather than short term patching.”