A SCHEME which will see millions of pounds spent improving almost 300 roads around the county is now underway.

The £3.95million Worcestershire County Council highways improvement scheme, which will see more than 150 miles of surface upgraded over the coming months, began rolling on Saturday.

For the fifth year running Worcestershire Highways teams will be working over the summer on the annual surface dressing programme.

Work is taking place in Evesham and other parts of Wychavon over the coming weeks.

To date more than 852 road sites covering 918 kilometres have been improved as part of the work.

This latest investment adds to the more than £55 million spent on road and footpath projects since 2011.

This type of repair is believed to be the most effective method for treating and repairing roads as it catches surfaces before they deteriorate to a condition where more costly work is required. It can also be laid quickly without the need for lengthy lane closures.

Jon Fraser from Worcestershire County Council said: "Surface dressing is the most appropriate method of repair for the roads in question and, importantly, offers value-for-money for the residents of Worcestershire because roads are caught before they get to a condition where more costly work is required. Prevention, as the saying goes, is always better than a cure and that's exactly the case here. Doing this can extend the life of a road for a further ten years.

"The way this type of repair works also brings other benefits including cutting potential disruption for motorists because it can be carried out quickly usually without the need for lane closures.

"We know that maintaining our highways is a priority for residents, which is why we'll be improving another 150 miles of roads across Worcestershire from now until August as we've done for the last few years."

For more information visit www.worcestershire.gov.uk/surfacedressing.