A NEW company has been hired to provide highways services from road repairs to winter maintenance.

Public service provider Amey was named as the preferred bidder for Gloucestershire's highway and transport services back in December last year.

The company already has valuable experience of working in the county, running the street scene contract for Gloucester City Council.

They also run similar contracts in Birmingham, Hampshire and Sheffield.

The new contract is for an initial five years but could be extended up to 11 years in total, which means it's worth between £130million and £450million overall.

The previous contract with Skanska ends on Monday.

Residents can report problems on the highway in the same way, either by reporting it online at www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/reportit, by emailing gcchighways@amey.co.uk or by calling 08000 514 514 free of charge from most landlines.

Residents can also keep up to date with planned road works by visiting www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/roadworks or by following @glosroads on Twitter from Tuesday.

Cllr Vernon Smith, cabinet member for highways, said: “I am confident that our new highways partnership with Amey will provide quality services and value for money for local tax payers.

"Thanks to the extra investment we've made in our roads and this new partnership, I expect Gloucestershire's network to go from strength to strength into the 21st century."

Mel Ewell, chief executive for Amey, said: “We are committed to delivering quality highways services in Gloucestershire and working closely with the County Council to deliver their vision of a safe and sustainable transport network.

"By drawing on our existing footprint in the local area along with our national highways experience we can provide a high quality, yet cost efficient services for the county.”