Dorset Council highways service has completed its annual surface dressing programme, with 96 miles of road treated this season.

Over 14 weeks, 457,000m2 of road was surface dressed - where bitumen is sprayed on the surface and finished with a thin layer of new stone chippings.

This method prolongs the life of roads by providing a waterproof seal, to prevent potholes from forming from water damage, and improve skid resistance.

Around 123,000m2 of main road was treated as part of the work - with these 'premium' sites also having a lock-in treatment over the top of the chippings to further protect the new surface.

Councillor Ray Bryan, portfolio holder for highways, travel and environment, said: "Surface dressing is a cost-effective treatment to help prolong the life of our roads and ensures that resources can be directed to fully resurface the roads that need it most - a treatment that costs around 12 times more per mile than surface dressing.

"Our annual maintenance programme targets road damage with the most appropriate repair method - patching, surface dressing, in-situ recycling, road preservation and resurfacing - to ensure we spend resources efficiently and effectively.

"This mixed-treatment lifecycle approach also reduces our carbon footprint through lowing the use of new aggregate and reducing the waste produced from our sites."

The rolling programme of surface dressing work started on April 25 and finished in mid-August.