A BLITZ on potholes has been launched across Hampshire.

An extra £2.6m is being ploughed into fixing up to 75,000 potholes that blight the county's roads.

The county council has been forced to move the cash from central reserves to cover the cost of re-surfacing along with drainage improvements, particularly targeting minor roads and country lanes.

A council report said it would ease pressure on the highways programme as there was only £100,000 left in reserve for routine repairs.

The deteriorating state of the road network has been blamed on severe weather and heavy traffic.

Hampshire county council leader Ken Thornber said: "Two wet summers and the worst winter for 18 years have taken a heavy toll on Hampshire's roads and created the need for more maintenance of the highways and drainage system."

The total budget for maintaining Hampshire's 5,000 miles of road network is £58m a year.

This is the second year the council has added £2m to the budget for its highways contractor Amey to fill between 50,000 to 75,000 potholes.