Repairs 'more urgent' than new roads, survey suggests
Motorists in Scotland would prefer existing roads were repaired rather new ones being built, a survey by a transport campaign group suggests.
Transform Scotland said 84% of 1,086 people said repairs were preferable to further construction - 7% disagreed.
The group quoted the most recent assessment by Audit Scotland, from 2011, which put the cost of repairing the road network at £2.25bn.
It said this was a fraction of the £9bn committed for new road building.
The survey was undertaken online in May, and the question asked was: "Do you think the Scottish government should give priority to fixing the existing road network before building new roads?"
Phil Matthews, chairman of Transform Scotland, said the vast majority of the public wanted to prioritise repairing and maintaining existing roads.
He said: "Scotland's existing roads, cycle paths and pavements are in an increasingly poor state of repair.
"Markings are deteriorating, pavements are damaged, and potholes are all too common, slowing down and diverting journeys, contributing to pedestrian, cyclist and motorist accidents, and resulting in expensive injuries and repair costs for travellers."
Earlier this year, figures released through Freedom of Information legislation revealed that Scottish councils had paid out more than £580,000 last year to drivers whose cars had been damaged by potholes, with Glasgow City Council alone paying out £360,000.