ROADS chiefs have been accused of ‘short-changing’ Barrhead by spending considerably less per resident on the town’s crumbling carriageways than those in the affluent suburbs such as Newton Mearns.

The Barrhead News can reveal spending on the town’s roads will be 60 per cent less per person than in wealthier areas of East Renfrewshire.

Local structural maintenance, which makes up £1.3 million of East Renfrewshire Council’s near £4m works programme budget, is split between roads needing repaired across the area’s towns and villages.

In Barrhead, the spending per person on roads and footpaths is just £6.55 – much lower than the £16.37 spent in Giffnock or £16.04 in Newton Mearns. The figure for Barrhead is also 44 per cent lower than the average spending per person across East Renfrewshire as a whole, which stands at £11.62.

Councillor Paul Aitken, who represents Barrhead, Liboside and Uplawmoor as an independent, has slammed the imbalance as “unacceptable.”

He said: “It’s very disappointing to see how much less proportionately is spent on roads in

Barrhead compared to other

areas of East Renfrewshire.

“It is self-evident the number of potholes in areas such as Auchenback, Carlibar and Cross Arthurlie is unacceptable.

“I call upon the roads department to provide Barrhead with its fair share of roads spending.”

Barrhead projects included in the council’s plans for the upcoming year include the resurfacing of Stewart Street and Levernside Avenue, as well as footpath repairs at Netherton Drive.

The spending on repairs in Barrhead totals £115,000. This is less than the amount to be spent in Giffnock and Clarkston, which are £199,400 and £121,000 respectively.

Both of these areas have significantly smaller populations than Barrhead.

Meanwhile, roads in Newton Mearns will receive £408,000 over the next year, while Neilston is set to receive £65,000 as part of the same funding stream, amounting to around £12.50 per resident.

However, a council spokesman has defended the local authority’s spending plans.

He said: “We have allocated almost £4m to our 2018/19 roads revenue works programme. This includes routine maintenance, including reactive repairs, winter maintenance and the structural maintenance of the network across East Renfrewshire.

“Roads across the whole of the authority are assessed by our experienced team and are

prioritised based on a number of factors. Those most in need of

repair have been added to our works programme for 2018/19, which includes a number of schemes in Barrhead and Neilston.

“Work to repair our roads network is an ongoing issue and prioritising work by need, rather than area, ensures resources are allocated in the most fair and equitable way.”

The spokesman also stressed a lack of funding for roads has left the local authority to make some difficult decisions when it comes to prioritising road

repairs.

He said: “As is the case with councils across Scotland, the number of roads and pavements requiring repair far outstrips the resources available to carry out the necessary works.

“This system ensures we are able to prioritise our budget and fairly repair the roads and pavements in East Renfrewshire that are most in need.”