THE UK’s biggest builder is set to land an estimated £150m deal to fix the Southampton’s crumbling roads and pavements.

Balfour Beatty, one of the country’s leading highways contractors, will today be named as the preferred bidder for a ten-year contract to take over Southampton City Council’s highways division.

The council said it was a “massive value for money deal” that would increase efficiences and boost the cash spent on the city’s roads and pavements Savings from the contract, understood to be up to £1m a year, will be ploughed straight back into the highways department.

Despite doubling spending on roads to over £6m council chiefs have admitted they would need £10m to halt the decline of the city’s highways.

The cost of resurfacing all of the city’s 353 miles of road has been estimated at £85m and there is a repair backlog of about £50m.

Cabinet member for transport councillor Matthew Dean said: “Balfour Beatty have a reputation of being one of the best in the business when it comes to improving roads and pavements.

“We know that the roads and pavements in our city need a lot of work to get them up to the standard that our residents deserve. This is a major step in achieving that.

“I’m not saying that we will wave a wand and instantly improve our roads but what this enables us to do is ensure the money we do have available to spend on our roads gives us maximum value.

“This partnership means we will be able to use the best expertise and equipment the private sector has to offer to tackle the condition of our infrastructure.”

He added: “This isn’t a money saving exercise – any efficiencies made during this contract will be ploughed straight back into improving our roads and pavements for the future. It is about getting more bang for our buck and getting value for money.”

The final ten-year contract with the option of a five-year extension, worth around £10m a year, will be awarded in early July. Between 100 and 120 council staff would transfer under the deal. Balfour Beatty will begin work in October. Hampshire’s roads are already maintained by an outside contractor, Amey, which began a ten-year £245m deal two years ago.

Balfour Beatty were earlier this year beaten by industry rival Carillion for the £35m contract to consolidate the Southampton’s two academy schools on two sites with new and improved facilities.

The building giant, which is valued at £1.74bn, owns Hampshire civil engineering firm Dean & Dyball.