COMMUNITY leaders have attended a demonstration of a new machine which could "revolutionise" the fixing of Hampshire's potholes.

Last Wednesday in West End, Hampshire County Council was given a demonstration of the PotholePro, JCB's new "revolutionary pothole and patch fixer".

The company launched the JCB PotholePro earlier this year which it claims can repair a pothole in less than eight minutes, four times quicker than standard methods and at half the cost of current solutions.

Hampshire Highways, a collaboration between Hampshire County Council and Milestone Infrastructure, took part in a week-long demonstration last week across Hampshire where the machine repaired in excess of 250 square metres of patches in the road.

Daily Echo: JCB's new PotholePro demonstrated in West End.

After seeing the new machine in action, Hampshire County Council’s Executive Member for Highways Operations, Councillor Russell Oppenheimer, said: “From the demonstration seen, it is clear that this machinery is effective in making a quick, clean and efficient repair. It will be interesting to understand more about its cost effectiveness over time but the potential for increasing the speed of repair is appealing.”

According to JCB, the PotholePro allows the contractor or local authority to cut the defect, crop the edges and clean the hole with one machine – delivering up to a 50 per cent cut in daily costs.

Paul Swallow, JCB PotholePro General Manager, said: “It’s been a hugely successful trial in Hampshire this week and I’m confident that everyone involved got to see just how effective the JCB PotholePro is at fixing potholes and patches permanently and at half the cost of current solutions.

“Potholes are a huge concern for councils all over the country and one of the issues with repairs at the moment is that in most cases they are only short- term fixes – and that’s where the JCB PotholePro differs.

“Just like when you have a filling, the dentist has to carefully remove all the decay so your tooth can be filled properly without recurrence of pain. It’s just the same with a pothole: it needs to be prepared properly before it is filled so the pothole doesn’t open up again within weeks. That’s exactly what the JCB PotholePro does; it cuts, crops and cleans the hole so a permanent repair can be carried out.”

Simon Watson, Business Director for Milestone Infrastructure, added: “Innovation in highway maintenance is key to reducing disruption and providing value for money for Hampshire residents, and I am pleased that Hampshire Highways is working closely with JCB in trialling new products.