NSW Governments $50 million pothole funding welcomed but 'not enough' for Dubbo Regional Council

In a press release from the minister for regional transport and roads Sam Farraway, he said the funding would be available to help "every regional council across the state" to carry out emergency repairs.

With Mr Farraway announcing that $50 million would fix 420,000 potholes, some quick calculations show they are offering just $119.50 to fix one pothole.

Dubbo Regional Council mayor Mathew Dickerson said he believed this would be a "very rough estimate".

"I don't have an estimate of the average cost to fix a pothole. There are too many variables. How far the potholes is from the depot; how many are together; the severity of the pothole; the traffic restrictions required on that section of road; the type of road etcetera," Cr Dickerson said.

If each of the 95 council's around the state fighting for funding were to receive an equal amount of the $50 million available, DRC would only receive $536,000.

If DRC were to receive half a million dollars of funding it would only fix 4420 potholes around the region - based on the Government's estimates.

"We will certainly welcome half a million dollars but we need a lot more," Cr Dickerson said.

Before the latest rain events, the DRC already had a $40 million road infrastructure backlog, and a budget in the current financial year of $28 million to spend on roads.

"Council would need an additional $40 million today to bring the entire road network up to an acceptable state," Cr Dickerson said.

That is 74 times more than the amount council could end up with if they are lucky enough to receive an equal amount of $536,000.

The Government, which is blaming the wet weather for the state of the roads, said it was "promising" to see that more than 135,000 potholes had been repaired on state roads in regional NSW.

"However, plenty more potholes still require attention, particularly on council-managed roads, which is why our government is putting more money on the table for councils to repair potholes on the roads regional communities use every day," Mr Farraway said.

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"This additional support will help ease the pressure local councils are facing and boost the resources they can draw upon to repair their most damaged roads to improve safety and reduce wear and tear on vehicles."

Member for the Dubbo electorate Dugald Saunders said he heard the local residents calls for help loud and clear.

"It is hard to drive anywhere on our road network without dodging potholes as a result of the wet weather we have experienced this year," Mr Saunders said.

"We've heard the calls for help loud and clear, and fixing the hundreds of potholes caused by recent heavy rains and flooding is a priority."

Bathurst mayor Robert Taylor said the $50 million commitment from the NSW Government was welcome but was nowhere near enough.

He said Bathurst Regional Council would certainly be taking advantage of the funding.

"We will apply for whatever we can get," he said.

But he said it would be spread thin once various councils applied.

"Anything is better than nothing, but it's not anywhere near enough money," he said.

When council apply for the funding they will make a submission through SmartyGrants with information on the lengths of the sealed regional and local network within their LGA and the benefits of the additional funding and how it will help repair potholes across the regional and local road network.

Each council will be given an allocation of funding based on the length of the sealed regional and local road network.

Applications for funding are open for two weeks from today with funding announced in November so councils can begin work as soon as possible.

Once council's funding is received work must be completed by January 1, 2024.

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