The Hills Shire: Council to use smart cars to assess damage on 1023 kilometres of local roads

Smart car technology will be used to monitor the state of kerbs, gutters and traffic on 1023 kilometres of roads across the Hills Shire. See the smart tech here.

Residents of The Hills Shire may soon see a strange-looking vehicle driving around town after council announced it will be implementing smart cars to assess kerbs, gutters, street furniture and traffic to improve its 1023 kilometres of local roads.

The announcement comes after The Hills Shire Council’s experienced one of its biggest years for filling and repairing potholes, recording its largest ever expenditure on road rehabilitation in 2022.

Mayor Dr Peter Gangemi announced the new smart tech initiative on Thursday, telling residents they will begin seeing this smart-technology vehicle on local roads during January.

“These smart vehicles are equipped with cameras, a profilometer for road texture assessment and GPS tracking devices, and they will be used to capture the information needed to assess the condition of our roads,” Mr Gangemi said.

“This is incredibly important, especially after all the rain that we’ve experienced and the impact it has on our road network.

Mayor Dr Peter Gangemi has announced a smart car initiative to assess damage and potholes across 1023 kilometres of local roads. Picture: The Hills Shire Council

“The results from this assessment will be so important in helping target priority roads and planning our multi-year road maintenance and renewal program.”

The Hills Shire Council’s general manager Michael Edgar said that roads were a key asset in the region worth more than $1 billion.

A large pothole filled with water on Fyfe Road, Kellyville Ridge in Sydney, one of Sydney's worst roads for potholes.

“Road funding is council’s single biggest expenditure item. In fact, for every $1000 received in rates, $285 is spent to keep our roads safe and maintained,” Mr Edgar said.

“We spent a total of $44 million on road projects as part of our total capital works expenditure for 2021-2022.

It was also one of our biggest years to fill potholes, with 5388 potholes and minor patching jobs taking place. This is compared to 1680 requests made in 2019.

“This smart technology vehicle should give council a clear picture of the condition of our roads and will help to develop our capital renewal programs over the coming years. It will also enable council to make informed decisions on how best to allocate budgets and resources, and in which order to prioritise our roads.”

A council spokesman confirmed that the smart car initiative was a recurrent program and not part of the $500 million pothole repair fund that was announced by NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet on Tuesday.

Mr Gangemi, along with mayors from Hawkesbury, Hornsby and other council areas, were key drivers in gaining the road repair grant for metropolitan councils, with Mayor Gangemi saying the government funding would be greatly needed after the council adopted its biggest ever road maintenance budget to repair its damaged roads.

Sydney experienced a record number of potholes in 2022 due to heavy rainfalls across the state. Picture: Bradley Hunter

“This is fantastic news for local residents and shows that the NSW Government and the Premier were listening to our calls for support,” he said.

“Our roads are a top priority and council spends millions of dollars each year to keep them safe and maintained.

“However, the rain and the multiple floods, caused by a third consecutive La Niña, has led to our roads deteriorating much quicker than usual, and an increase in potholes and subsequent road patching jobs. The funding needed to repair our entire network is now beyond Council’s annual funding means.

“The extra funding is welcomed and will help our council to return our roads to their previous standard.”

A spokesman from the council confirmed that the smart car assessment initiative, which is being conducted by Talis Consultants on behalf of Council, has started.