Residents in Midlothian are being asked to name the council’s new superfast pothole machine which is reducing repair time from half a day to 30 minutes.
Midlothian Council’s new 13 tonne JCB Pothole Pro has been described as a ‘magnificent beast’ and is being hailed as a game changer in the battle to fix damaged roads in the county. Edinburgh council already has one of these machines known locally as the Pothole Killer.
The local authority has launched a competition asking people to come up with a name for the machine.
Early suggestions on social media include Pat BenaTAR, Phil McCracken, Sir Filly Connolly and Holey Willoughby and Fill Schofield.
A video showing the machine, which is expected to allow the roads team to fill in 1,000 potholes in the next six months, in action has also been launched alongside the competition.
Cllr Dianne Alexander, Midlothian Council’s cabinet member with responsibility for roads, said: “This is a magnificent beast of a machine that the roads team tell me can do a repair in 30 minutes that could otherwise take half a day using conventional methods.
“These repairs are not temporary fixes that will last only a week or two, these are permanent solutions that will last the lifetime of the road.”
The Pothole Pro was bought as part of a £780,000 programme to replace outdated roads machinery with the council pledging £12.5million of capital investments in road repairs over the next five years.
Other names suggested by members of the public so far in the competition include The Tarminator, Hole in Wonder, and About Bl@#dy Time.
Entries will be considered between now and 30 May with the new name to be announced after the competition closing date.
by Marie Sharp Local Democracy Reporter.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) is a public service news agency. It is funded by the BBC, provided by the local news sector (in Edinburgh that is Reach plc (the publisher behind Edinburgh Live and The Daily Record) and used by many qualifying partners. Local Democracy Reporters cover news about top-tier local authorities and other public service organisations.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) is a public service news agency. It is funded by the BBC, provided by the local news sector (in Edinburgh that is Reach plc (the publisher behind Edinburgh Live and The Daily Record) and used by many qualifying partners. Local Democracy Reporters cover news about top-tier local authorities and other public service organisations.
