Information on Maintaining our Roads

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Consultation has concluded

This page has been archived, please visit the Your Say home page or Lismore City Council website for the most up to date information.

This page is designed to provide an understanding of how Council maintains our road network and some of the challenges we face.

Community satisfaction surveys consistently tell us that maintaining roads has the highest level of importance yet the lowest level of satisfaction of all services Council provides.

While Council is working hard to improve and maintain its road network, it’s also important for Council to manage community expectations.

“There are so many benefits to living in Lismore and surrounds – the strong sense of community, the natural beauty, the slower pace of life, and the abundance of access to fresh produce. But there are some downsides too – one of which is a road network that is not perfect,” Civic Services Manager Darren Patch said.

“It is unrealistic to expect that our roads will be as good as those in metropolitan areas. We have a $70 million roads backlog and we do not receive adequate funding from other tiers of government to adequately maintain our 1200km road network.

“We will never have roads like the big cities here in Lismore however we do have a plan for long-term improvements. Change will be incremental and take place over many years, but over time our residents will see improvements across the whole Lismore Local Government Area.”

To read more about our roadwork realities, please download our Fact Sheet.

Click below for more information

  1. View a list of roads we are maintaining this financial year
  2. Report a road hazard or pothole
  3. Information on current delays, accidents and road closures in the Northern Rivers

Please see our categories below to learn more about how we maintain our roads.

This page has been archived, please visit the Your Say home page or Lismore City Council website for the most up to date information.

This page is designed to provide an understanding of how Council maintains our road network and some of the challenges we face.

Community satisfaction surveys consistently tell us that maintaining roads has the highest level of importance yet the lowest level of satisfaction of all services Council provides.

While Council is working hard to improve and maintain its road network, it’s also important for Council to manage community expectations.

“There are so many benefits to living in Lismore and surrounds – the strong sense of community, the natural beauty, the slower pace of life, and the abundance of access to fresh produce. But there are some downsides too – one of which is a road network that is not perfect,” Civic Services Manager Darren Patch said.

“It is unrealistic to expect that our roads will be as good as those in metropolitan areas. We have a $70 million roads backlog and we do not receive adequate funding from other tiers of government to adequately maintain our 1200km road network.

“We will never have roads like the big cities here in Lismore however we do have a plan for long-term improvements. Change will be incremental and take place over many years, but over time our residents will see improvements across the whole Lismore Local Government Area.”

To read more about our roadwork realities, please download our Fact Sheet.

Click below for more information

  1. View a list of roads we are maintaining this financial year
  2. Report a road hazard or pothole
  3. Information on current delays, accidents and road closures in the Northern Rivers

Please see our categories below to learn more about how we maintain our roads.

Consultation has concluded

  • How we maintain sealed roads

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    Maintaining sealed roads

    Lismore City Council is responsible for 1200km of roads – 780km of sealed roads and 420km of gravel roads. Other roads in Lismore are the responsibility of Roads and Maritime Services. These include the major arterial roads such as the Bruxner Highway and Bangalow Road.



    A sealed road refers to a road that has been formed using surface treatments such as bitumen, concrete or asphalt. Therefore it has been permanently ‘sealed’ using these materials. Council generally uses bitumen on its sealed roads.

    To read more about how Council maintains its sealed roads, download our Fact Sheet.

    Maintaining sealed roads

    Lismore City Council is responsible for 1200km of roads – 780km of sealed roads and 420km of gravel roads. Other roads in Lismore are the responsibility of Roads and Maritime Services. These include the major arterial roads such as the Bruxner Highway and Bangalow Road.



    A sealed road refers to a road that has been formed using surface treatments such as bitumen, concrete or asphalt. Therefore it has been permanently ‘sealed’ using these materials. Council generally uses bitumen on its sealed roads.

    To read more about how Council maintains its sealed roads, download our Fact Sheet.

    Consultation has concluded

  • How we maintain gravel roads

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    Maintaing unsealed (gravel) roads

    Gravel roads make up 420km of our road network. They need continual grading, drain clearing and the addition of gravel in order to stay in good condition.

    Typically, our gravel roads were constructed many years ago as a result of the increasing demand from local farming and agriculture, and were not built with future traffic demands in mind.

    There are a number of other factors that influence the overall performance of gravel roads: quantity and quality of gravel used in building the road, rainfall, drainage, quality of causeways and volume of heavy vehicle usage.

    If you want to find out more about how we maintain gravel roads, download our Fact Sheet.

    Maintaing unsealed (gravel) roads

    Gravel roads make up 420km of our road network. They need continual grading, drain clearing and the addition of gravel in order to stay in good condition.

    Typically, our gravel roads were constructed many years ago as a result of the increasing demand from local farming and agriculture, and were not built with future traffic demands in mind.

    There are a number of other factors that influence the overall performance of gravel roads: quantity and quality of gravel used in building the road, rainfall, drainage, quality of causeways and volume of heavy vehicle usage.

    If you want to find out more about how we maintain gravel roads, download our Fact Sheet.

    Consultation has concluded

  • How we fix potholes

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    What causes a pothole?

    Heavy traffic or natural ageing causes cracks in the pavement. Rainwater seeps through these cracks into the base material beneath.

    The vibration of traffic causes the wet base material to settle or shift, forming a cavity. With nothing under it for support, the pavement will weaken further and ultimately cave in.


    To find out more about how we fix potholes, download our Fact Sheet.
    What causes a pothole?

    Heavy traffic or natural ageing causes cracks in the pavement. Rainwater seeps through these cracks into the base material beneath.

    The vibration of traffic causes the wet base material to settle or shift, forming a cavity. With nothing under it for support, the pavement will weaken further and ultimately cave in.


    To find out more about how we fix potholes, download our Fact Sheet.
    Consultation has concluded