Norfolk has been ranked top of 28 similar councils in a national independent survey which looks at satisfaction with highways and transport services.

Eastern Daily Press: Martin Wilby, Norfolk County Council cabinet member for highways and infrastructure. Pic: Norfolk Conservatives.Martin Wilby, Norfolk County Council cabinet member for highways and infrastructure. Pic: Norfolk Conservatives. (Image: Norfolk Conservatives)

Some 33,000 Norfolk people were chosen at random to rate a range of highways and transportation services in the National Highways and Transport Survey, carried out each year by Ipsos MORI.

Last year, Norfolk came fourth, but this year it has taken top spot.

People were asked to rate the council's performance in six areas - road maintenance, public transport, walking and cycling, congestion, accessibility and road safety.

The council performed above the national average in five of the six categories. The only category where Norfolk fared below the national average was in public transport.

Tom McCabe, executive director of community and environmental services at Norfolk County Council, said: "This survey gives us a picture of how we compare to other councils across the country.

"For Norfolk to be in the top spot, both nationally, and in the eastern region, is very welcome news and testament to the hard work of our team.

"We want to focus on what people tell us is important to them, and the survey gives us the information to do this.

"One of these important areas is pavements in our towns and villages, and we're pleased that this has seen one of the biggest increases in satisfaction this year.

"We'll be looking closely at the results to help us plan our future work programmes and hopefully maintain this high level of customer satisfaction."

Martin Wilby, cabinet member for highways and infrastructure at Norfolk County Council said the Norwich Northern Distributor Road, also known as Broadland Northway, had contributed to the positive verdict.

He said: "It's no coincidence that the Broadland Northway had been open for months at the time of this survey.

"And the improved condition of the highways is arguably due to the increased repairs which were made possible by the extra government funding we received after the Beast from the East."

In July, council leaders said more than £36m would be needed to restore Norfolk's highways to the condition they should be in, with money so tight they were having to "manage deterioration" of roads.