Essex County Council plans to spend an extra £25 million on road maintenance over the summer holidays, with some significant road closures to be brought in soon.

It added the decision to earmark funds needs to be taken urgently to give the contractor and its intended sub-contractors time to mobilise and deliver the work during 2024/25.

It added some of the work is best done in the summer months in order to be as effective as possible.

Of the total £25 million it is requested that £22.1 million be added to the 2024/25 capital programme in line with the remaining £2.9 million being added to the 2024/25 revenue budget for Essex Highways Commissioning.

Detailed plans will be produced by Essex Highways for each of the additional works commissioned setting out what activity will be delivered, the quantity that will be delivered and the agreed time frame this will occur over.

Last week the county council announced more repairs to roads, pavements and structures in Essex will be carried out over the next six weeks as crews make the most of lower traffic levels during the school summer holidays.

Some significant closures are starting in the next few weeks.

Bonhunt Bridge on Wicken Road, Newport, is due to be closed for one week from Monday, August 19 so vital strengthening works can take place

Petersfield Bridge, Chelmsford, is due to be closed from Monday, August 5 for two weeks so essential maintenance can take place to extend the life of the structure.

Harrows Bridge in Pound Lane, Benfleet, will be closed for one week from Monday, August 12 to carry out essential brickwork repairs.

The county has warned some travellers may face delays but information about road closures will be made available in advance to allow residents and businesses time to make alternative arrangements.

As well as Essex Highways crews, third-party utility companies will also be looking to take advantage of quieter roads to complete as many infrastructure repairs and upgrades as possible.

The money will come on top of an additional £12m pledged to tackle road maintenance across Essex itself on top of the £39m budgeted for 2024/2025.

Councillor Tom Cunningham, Cabinet Member for Highways, Infrastructure, and Sustainable Transport at Essex County Council said: "Improving the roads of Essex to make it safer, greener and healthier for the county's residents to travel is my number one priority.

"The school holidays, where traffic tends to be quieter, provides crews with an excellent opportunity to carry out much-needed repairs to improve our roads. But it's also a time of year where many of us might be travelling for days out or for holidays, so I'd like to remind residents to check and plan before they travel to minimise any delays."