Shetland Islands Council has hired a specialist road repairs vehicle which will be used to carry out mobile repairs to potholes and other road surface defects over the next couple of weeks.

The Roadmaster 'Patcher' carries a supply of chips and bitumen and can quickly repair small potholes using a robotic arm, without the need for road closures.

-- Advertisement --

Neil Hutcheson, Team Leader - Asset and Network, said: "Neil Hutcheson, Team Leader - Asset and Network, said: "We'll be using the 'patcher' vehicle this year for the first time and it's a cost effective solution for some of our roads. We'll also be carrying out trials to improve the surface dressing method, which although we have used it successfully for many years, has suffered from slightly higher than normal chipping loss over this cold winter.

"This essential work is best suited to the summer months and we'd like to apologise in advance to any road users who experience any delays."

(LM/MH)