A NEW piece of equipment has been brought in by Croydon Council to repair the borough's potholes in record time.

Since the start of the year around 9,800 potholes have been repaired but another 8,600 are awaiting attention.

The council hopes the time it takes to clear up the backlog will decrease significantly now it is leasing the Nu-Phalt Infrared Road Repair System – the device used to maintain Silverstone's Grand Prix circuit.

A typical one square metre repair can now be completed in just 20 minutes.

The quality of repairs should also improve and blend "seamlessly" into the surrounding road surface.

Because infrared is used the pothole repair is joint-free, lengthening the life span of the repair.

With the equipment, a typical pothole repair can be completed with just one van and two operators.

The council's efforts to improve the borough's roads have been blighted in the past by repaired potholes reopening. This has even led to a change in policy, with particularly blighted roads being resurfaced rather than subjected to repeated temporary repairs.

The new piece of equipment is also said to be more environmentally friendly, as only a small amount of new material is needed for each repair.

Phil Thomas, the council's cabinet member for highways and the environment, said: "The machine is a bit more expensive to lease, but so cost-effective it's fantastic value for money.

"Now we won't have to do so many temporary repairs and people won't have to keep ringing us. I've seen it myself, it's a great machine."

Even though it is spending millions on resurfacing, the council says there will always be a need for urgent repairs, adding to the value of the new equipment.

Council highways engineer Tony Whyatt said: "I'm really optimistic about how this will save us time and money.

"We reuse most of the existing road material onsite and need to add only a small amount of fresh material to each repair.

"There are no noisy compressors, and the system cuts the number of vehicles and staff involved in each repair."