A council contractor responsible for highways maintenance has been fined £671,546 over a two-year period for failing to do the work they were paid for.

A council contractor responsible for highways maintenance has been fined £671,546 over a two-year period for failing to do the work it was paid for.

Herts County Council’s main highways contractor Ringway was fined £421,321 in 2013/14 and £250,225 in 2014/15, according to figures released by County Hall’s Liberal Democrat leader Councillor Stephen Giles-Medhurst.

The fines relate to failure to meet target time frames when responding to emergencies or reported road defects, and working without a permit or in breach of permit conditions.

This year has seen a surge in people complaining to the Comet about the poor state of roads in the area, with potholes, uneven pavements and poor road resurfacing at the top of their lists.

Some of these gripes, relating to road resurfacing, were as a result of ongoing technical difficulties experienced by another contractor, Colas.

One Stevenage taxi driver said: “I’ve made the effort to report the state of the roads. Why do I bother? Roads get ignored. Why pay road tax when the roads are waiting to cause an accident?”

Councillor Giles-Medhurst said: “It’s so disappointing these fines have to be imposed. I understand there are still likely to be fines this year, so Ringway has not totally put its house in order.

“All I and residents want is a decent service that delivers first time. We still do not have that.”

Ringway declined to comment but County Hall’s cabinet member for highways Councillor Terry Douris said: “Where our contractors fall short of our high expectations we make sure they are held to account.”