{ "id": "AIBD-0144", "title": "Blackpool Council's Project Amber imagery and AI road surveys: 5,145 potholes filled for about £450,000 and pothole claim payouts down to £719", "summary": "Blackpool's Project Amber imagery/AI surveys: 5,145 potholes filled for ~£450k; pothole claim payouts fell to £719 (DfT, 2024)", "date_observed": "2024-09-26", "date_basis": "unassessed", "date_precision": "unassessed", "benefit_status": null, "source_collection": null, "source_entry": null, "account": "Blackpool Council's Project Amber, launched in 2019 under the Local Council Roads Innovation Group, uses high-definition road imagery to detect potholes and prioritize repairs. The Blackpool Unlimited page calls it artificial-intelligence technology piloted in Anchorsholme and Bispham. It states that since summer 2019, 5,145 potholes were filled in North Shore for just under £450,000 against £1.5 million by traditional methods. The Department for Transport's release of 26 September 2024 says Blackpool was the first authority to use the technology. It had paid up to £1.5 million a year to settle pothole claims and “last year” paid out only £719. The release dates the work only as “last year”. The reduction is credited to the whole program, including surface treatments.", "category": "general benefit", "unexpected": false, "purpose": "Survey road condition from imagery to find and prioritize pothole and surface defects for repair", "system": "Project Amber road-condition imagery and AI survey (Blackpool Council)", "model_version": null, "developer": null, "deployer": "Blackpool Council", "location": "Blackpool, United Kingdom", "domain": "Municipal services: highway maintenance", "segment": "Local authority highways", "benefit_type": "Improved Organizational Efficiency", "taxonomy_note": null, "registry_ids": {}, "ratings": [ { "group": "personal", "depth": null, "reason": "Program-level figures; no identifiable individual event." }, { "group": "organizational", "depth": null, "reason": "Cost and claims figures are program aggregates attributed by the council and DfT." }, { "group": "societal", "depth": null, "reason": "Local aggregate without a discrete attributable event." } ], "ai_role": { "status": "unassessed", "statement": "Neither source isolates the detection software's contribution. The claims reduction and savings are credited to Project Amber as a whole, which combines imagery surveys with preventive surface treatments. The Blackpool Unlimited page is undated and does not state its operator, so it is treated as a council-adjacent promotional page, not an official report." }, "evidence": [ { "kind": "press release", "citation": "Department for Transport (2024). Transport Secretary pledges to fix pothole plague as she sees cutting-edge repair technology in action on Blackpool visit. GOV.UK press release, 26 Sep 2024.", "title": "Transport Secretary pledges to fix pothole plague as she sees cutting-edge repair technology in action on Blackpool visit", "url": "https://www.gov.uk/government/news/transport-secretary-pledges-to-fix-pothole-plague-as-she-sees-cutting-edge-repair-technology-in-action-on-blackpool-visit", "date": "2024-09-26", "written_by": "independent", "quote": "In previous years it was paying up to £1.5 million a year to settle claims. Last year it only paid out £719." }, { "kind": "press release", "citation": "Blackpool Unlimited (n.d.). Artificial intelligence boosts road maintenance efficiency (quoting Cllr Fred Jackson, Blackpool Council, and Steve Berry, Department for Transport).", "title": "Artificial intelligence boosts road maintenance efficiency", "url": "https://blackpoolunlimited.com/artificial-intelligence-boosts-road-maintenance-efficiency/", "date": null, "written_by": "deployer", "quote": "Since summer 2019, 5145 potholes have been filled in North Shore" }, { "kind": "other", "citation": "Blackpool Council (2025). Highways maintenance programme. blackpool.gov.uk, page last modified 4 September 2025.", "title": "Highways maintenance programme", "url": "https://www.blackpool.gov.uk/Residents/Parking-roads-and-transport/Roadworks-and-road-maintenance/Highways-maintenance-programme.aspx", "date": "2025-09-04", "written_by": "deployer", "quote": null } ], "replication": { "produced_by": [ "Imagery-based detection of potholes, cracks and surface damage across the network", "Color-coded prioritization used by engineers to schedule treatments", "Preventive surface treatments funded through the program" ], "must_hold": [ "Regular imagery capture of the road network", "Budget for follow-up treatments", "Claims handling that records payouts over time" ], "echoes": [ { "date": "2026-04-07", "setting": "Cambridgeshire County Council £100,000 contract for AI camera-based highway inspections after weekly defects peaked at 2,892 (BBC/LocalGov, Apr 2026); no outcome yet", "model_version": null, "outcome": "unknown", "source": "https://www.localgov.co.uk/AI-could-save-Cambridgeshire-CC-from-future-potholes/64160" }, { "date": "2024-01-08", "setting": "Hertfordshire County Council ARRES pothole-repair robot (Robotiz3d/University of Liverpool), lab-tested, road trials pending (BBC, Jan 2024)", "model_version": null, "outcome": "unknown", "source": "https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-67934795" } ] }, "paired_incident": null, "headline": "Project Amber fills 5,145 Blackpool potholes for about £450,000", "metric": "5,145 potholes were filled in North Shore for just under £450,000", "comparator": { "against": "the council's pothole compensation payouts in the years before Project Amber", "before": "up to £1.5 million a year", "after": "£719", "basis": "measured", "quote": "Since 2019 Blackpool has seen significant reductions in its compensation bill for pothole related pay outs. In previous years it was paying up to £1.5 million a year to settle claims. Last year it only paid out £719.", "url": "https://www.gov.uk/government/news/transport-secretary-pledges-to-fix-pothole-plague-as-she-sees-cutting-edge-repair-technology-in-action-on-blackpool-visit" }, "later": { "status": "persisted", "date": "2025-09-04", "note": "Blackpool Council's highways page, last modified 4 September 2025, still presents Project Amber and its imagery surveys as the basis of a 2025/26 programme backed by almost £6m of targeted funding.", "quote": "Our Project Amber scheme aims to make Blackpool's roads better by repairing roads in a faster, greener way.", "url": "https://www.blackpool.gov.uk/Residents/Parking-roads-and-transport/Roadworks-and-road-maintenance/Highways-maintenance-programme.aspx" }, "value": { "amount": "over £1m", "what": "saved on filling 5,145 potholes in North Shore, final cost just under £450k against £1.5m by traditional methods", "who": "Blackpool Council", "estimate": false, "quote": "Blackpool Council has managed to save over £1m resulting in a final cost of just under £450k.", "url": "https://blackpoolunlimited.com/artificial-intelligence-boosts-road-maintenance-efficiency/" }, "developer_country": null, "deployer_country": "United Kingdom", "unrated_because": null, "brief_notes": null, "brief": null, "revisions": [ { "date": "2026-10-20", "change": "Record drafted from the cited sources.", "source": null, "editor": "AIBD" }, { "date": "2026-10-21", "change": "Added what the benefit is measured against, what happened since, the value as stated from the cited sources.", "source": "https://www.gov.uk/government/news/transport-secretary-pledges-to-fix-pothole-plague-as-she-sees-cutting-edge-repair-technology-in-action-on-blackpool-visit; https://www.blackpool.gov.uk/Residents/Parking-roads-and-transport/Roadworks-and-road-maintenance/Highways-maintenance-programme.aspx; https://blackpoolunlimited.com/artificial-intelligence-boosts-road-maintenance-efficiency/", "editor": "AIBD" }, { "date": "2026-10-21", "change": "Country of the deployer added from the organization's own site or a registry.", "source": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackpool_Council", "editor": "AIBD" }, { "date": "2026-10-21", "change": "Prose pass: account, the system's part rewritten in shorter sentences with abbreviations expanded; facts, figures and quotations unchanged.", "source": null, "editor": "AIBD" } ], "confidence": "claimed", "shade": "low", "claim_status": "The deployer's account", "claim_basis": "Sources: one independent press release, the deployer's press release and the deployer's other. 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Highways maintenance programme. blackpool.gov.uk, page last modified 4 September 2025.", "title": "Highways maintenance programme", "url": "https://www.blackpool.gov.uk/Residents/Parking-roads-and-transport/Roadworks-and-road-maintenance/Highways-maintenance-programme.aspx", "date": "2025-09-04", "written_by": "deployer" } ] } }, "provenance": { "kind": "legacy_record", "basis": "Preserved from the existing AIBD record; external sources were not rechecked.", "record_fields": [ "evidence" ], "source_refs": [] }, "review_state": "record_mapped", "coverage": "partial" }, "sources[].upstream_sources": { "state": "not_assessed", "review_state": "not_assessed", "coverage": "partial" }, "strategic_assessments[]": { "state": "not_assessed", "review_state": "not_assessed", "coverage": "partial", "family": "strategic assessments" }, "summary": { "state": "value_present", "value": { "kind": "record_fields", "fields": { "summary": "Blackpool's Project Amber imagery/AI surveys: 5,145 potholes filled for ~£450k; pothole claim payouts fell to £719 (DfT, 2024)", "account": "Blackpool Council's Project Amber, launched in 2019 under the Local Council Roads Innovation Group, uses high-definition road imagery to detect potholes and prioritize repairs. The Blackpool Unlimited page calls it artificial-intelligence technology piloted in Anchorsholme and Bispham. It states that since summer 2019, 5,145 potholes were filled in North Shore for just under £450,000 against £1.5 million by traditional methods. The Department for Transport's release of 26 September 2024 says Blackpool was the first authority to use the technology. It had paid up to £1.5 million a year to settle pothole claims and “last year” paid out only £719. The release dates the work only as “last year”. The reduction is credited to the whole program, including surface treatments." } }, "provenance": { "kind": "legacy_record", "basis": "Preserved from the existing AIBD record; external sources were not rechecked.", "record_fields": [ "summary", "account" ], "source_refs": [] }, "review_state": "record_mapped", "coverage": "partial" }, "systems[].autonomy_permissions": { "state": "not_assessed", "review_state": "not_assessed", "coverage": "partial" }, "systems[].component_role": { "state": "not_assessed", "review_state": "not_assessed", "coverage": "partial" }, "systems[].deployment_configuration": { "state": "not_assessed", "review_state": "not_assessed", "coverage": "partial" }, "systems[].inputs_outputs": { "state": "not_assessed", "review_state": "not_assessed", "coverage": "partial" }, "systems[].model_name": { "state": "not_assessed", "review_state": "not_assessed", "coverage": "partial" }, "systems[].model_version": { "state": "not_assessed", "review_state": "not_assessed", "coverage": "partial" }, "systems[].product_name": { "state": "value_present", "value": { "kind": "record_fields", "fields": { "system": "Project Amber road-condition imagery and AI survey (Blackpool Council)" } }, "provenance": { "kind": "legacy_record", "basis": "Preserved from the existing AIBD record; external sources were not rechecked.", "record_fields": [ "system" ], "source_refs": [] }, "review_state": "record_mapped", "coverage": "partial" }, "systems[].provider": { "state": "not_assessed", "review_state": "not_assessed", "coverage": "partial" }, "taxonomy_crosswalks[]": { "state": "not_assessed", "review_state": "not_assessed", "coverage": "partial" }, "title": { "state": "value_present", "value": { "kind": "record_fields", "fields": { "title": "Blackpool Council's Project Amber imagery and AI road surveys: 5,145 potholes filled for about £450,000 and pothole claim payouts down to £719", "headline": "Project Amber fills 5,145 Blackpool potholes for about £450,000" } }, "provenance": { "kind": "legacy_record", "basis": "Preserved from the existing AIBD record; external sources were not rechecked.", "record_fields": [ "title", "headline" ], "source_refs": [] }, "review_state": "record_mapped", "coverage": "partial" }, "version": { "state": "value_present", "value": { "kind": "identifiers", "identifiers": [ "f41eacff1c51f55f1af28eb803574f2c33b7ce980714b81b01dbda6419d456da" ], "role": "SHA-256 of normalized original case data" }, "provenance": { "kind": "curatorial", "basis": "Deterministic content version assigned by the local migration.", "record_fields": [], "source_refs": [] }, "review_state": "record_mapped", "coverage": "complete" }, "workflow": { "state": "value_present", "value": { "kind": "record_fields", "fields": { "account": "Blackpool Council's Project Amber, launched in 2019 under the Local Council Roads Innovation Group, uses high-definition road imagery to detect potholes and prioritize repairs. The Blackpool Unlimited page calls it artificial-intelligence technology piloted in Anchorsholme and Bispham. It states that since summer 2019, 5,145 potholes were filled in North Shore for just under £450,000 against £1.5 million by traditional methods. The Department for Transport's release of 26 September 2024 says Blackpool was the first authority to use the technology. It had paid up to £1.5 million a year to settle pothole claims and “last year” paid out only £719. The release dates the work only as “last year”. The reduction is credited to the whole program, including surface treatments.", "replication": { "produced_by": [ "Imagery-based detection of potholes, cracks and surface damage across the network", "Color-coded prioritization used by engineers to schedule treatments", "Preventive surface treatments funded through the program" ], "must_hold": [ "Regular imagery capture of the road network", "Budget for follow-up treatments", "Claims handling that records payouts over time" ], "echoes": [ { "date": "2026-04-07", "setting": "Cambridgeshire County Council £100,000 contract for AI camera-based highway inspections after weekly defects peaked at 2,892 (BBC/LocalGov, Apr 2026); no outcome yet", "outcome": "unknown", "source": "https://www.localgov.co.uk/AI-could-save-Cambridgeshire-CC-from-future-potholes/64160" }, { "date": "2024-01-08", "setting": "Hertfordshire County Council ARRES pothole-repair robot (Robotiz3d/University of Liverpool), lab-tested, road trials pending (BBC, Jan 2024)", "outcome": "unknown", "source": "https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-67934795" } ] } } }, "provenance": { "kind": "legacy_record", "basis": "Preserved from the existing AIBD record; external sources were not rechecked.", "record_fields": [ "account", "replication" ], "source_refs": [] }, "review_state": "record_mapped", "coverage": "partial" } }, "summary": { "total": 91, "addressed": 91, "known": 34, "reviewed": 0, "record_mapped": 34, "not_assessed": 57, "complete": false, "by_state": { "value_present": 34, "not_reported": 0, "unresolved": 0, "not_assessed": 57, "not_applicable": 0, "withheld": 0, "source_unavailable": 0 } } } }