MORE than 5,000 potholes and road defects on the Island's roads have been repaired following the severe winter weather.

Since November the number of defects reported is around seven times the normal amount, which stands usually at 500 per month.

12 teams from the Department of Infrastructure have been busy carrying out these repairs as well as resurfacing entire carriageways at a cost of £730,000.

Infrastructure Minister Phil Gawne MHK said: "My department has been working flat out to try to recover the extensive winter road damage and I have re-directed significant budgets to help tackle the problem as well as seeking additional resources.  

"In view of the severity of the damage I am reviewing again the overall issue of road maintenance to consider how we can make the best use of our limited resources.

"Whilst these are challenging times I am delighted that the workforce has really pulled out all the stops to get the roads back into a serviceable condition and I wish to publicly thank all staff involved for their hard work. I also want to thank the public, both for their diligence in reporting defects and their patience whilst the recovery work has been underway."

The Island's roads suffered the damage after a particularly cold spell which saw the Island hit with freezing temperatures, snow and ice.

Director of highways Richard Pearson said: "Water can get into cracks in the road and repeatedly freeze, expand and then thaw and this causes the road to start to break up as will have been widely observed. 

"In severe cases tracks that have historically been made up into roads by simply overlaying tarmac can suffer from frost heave where the ground itself freezes, expands and blows out in a more dramatic and catastrophic failure. 

"Both failure modes have been evident around the Island’s 650 mile road network due to sustained temperatures of less than minus five degrees Celsius."

Last month the number of defects started to slow to around twice the normal level and the department said it is hopeful that the Island's roads will be back to a "more or less stable state of repair" by the end of May.

The Department of Infrastructure also revealed it plans to direct resources away from improvement schemes to focus on basic highway maintenance and is currently undertaking an overall review of road maintenance needs.

Potholes can still be reported by e-mailing potholes@gov.im or telephoning 01624 686665.