MILLIONS of pounds have been spent on unblocking drains in Herefordshire over the last few years.

The figures have been revealed by a freedom of information request to Herefordshire Council.

The council is responsible for a total of 27,986 road drains currently, with thousands receiving either routine or ad-hoc maintenance each year.

Between 2021 and 2024, the council spend a total of £2,018,535.27 on maintaining those drains, the request revealed.

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Herefordshire Council said it had spent £633,153.73 on routine or reactive drainage from 2021 to 2022, £738,401.81 from 2022 to 2023, and £646,979.73 from 2023 to 2024.

It also said that while just 1,274 blocked drains were reported in 2021, 1,129 in 2022, and 1,214 in 2023, thousands more had been cleaned out in each year.

In 2021, Herefordshire Council said, 3,425 drains were cleared on an ad-hoc basis, while 6,363 were tackled as part of a cleaning programme.

2022 saw 3,108 cleaned on an ad-hoc basis and 6,184 on a planned basis, while 3,425 were cleaned on an ad-hoc basis and 5,457 were cleaned as part of the annual programme in 2023.