More than 70 roads surface dressed across Shropshire
The A495 between Ellesmere and Whittington was one road surface dressed
More than 70 stretches of road across Shropshire have been treated this spring and summer as part of Shropshire Council’s 2026 surface dressing programme – work that will play a key role in improving the county’s roads and preventing potholes.
Work began on 22 April and was completed at the start of June.
The 72 sites are located across the county and include all types of road, from urban roads to major ‘A’ and ‘B’ roads.
David Vasmer, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for highways and waste, said:
“Surface dressing plays a key role in improving roads across the county and preventing potholes.
“This year’s programme has seen more than 70 stretches of road treated, and I want to thank all local residents and road users for their patience and understanding while work was carried out. The work really will make a difference to their roads and help to prevent potholes and other defects forming in the future.
“Work was completed ahead of schedule and on budget and I want to thank all involved in delivering this year’s programme, including Kier, and Hazell and Jefferies, who carried out the work.
In addition to the surface dressing work, a further 90 roads across Shropshire are being resurfaced this year.
This year’s surface dressing programme in numbers:
- Roads surface dressed: 72
- Total surface area: 748,356m2 (equal to 105 football pitches)
- Roads surface sealed*: 17
- Total area sealed seal coverage: 181,766 m2 (equal to 25 football pitches)
*Roads are sealed with Lockchip, a solution sprayed on a newly surface dressed road to seal any loose chippings and prolong its lifespan
Materials used:
- Bitumen emulsion – 1.3million litres
- Stone: 10,200 tonnes
- Binder: 1.5 million litres
About surface dressing
Surface dressing is a quick, efficient and cost-effective way of preventing potholes, maintaining skid-resistance and waterproofing road surfaces. It forms a major part of the council’s annual road maintenance programme and is being carried out alongside other preventative and reactive maintenance work.
Surface dressing involves applying and rolling aggregate ‘chippings’ onto a bitumen binder. It will seal the surface, improve surface texture and prolong the life of the road by many years.
