The money is being given to councils in England to deal with up to two million potholes which, insurers say, have caused up to three million crashes or ‘near misses’.

Transport Secretary Philip Hammond said: “Millions of motorists across the country have their daily drives ruined by potholes. And the awful winter weather we had this year is only going to make that problem worse.

“That is why, despite the tough financial position we are in, we are going to give councils over £100m extra to help carry out much needed repairs to England’s roads.

“I am determined to see the winter damage to our roads fixed as quickly as possible and we will be working with councils to make sure that happens.

“This money should make a real difference to the millions of drivers who are fed up with having to continually battle against dangerous potholes, giving them safer and smoother journeys.”

To make sure that councils are able to make use of this money as soon as possible, the funds will be distributed to English local authorities based on the amount and condition of roads the authority is responsible for rather than councils needing to apply for the funding.

Extra funding has been made possible because of savings the DfT made earlier in the financial year.

In order to qualify for this extra funding and to promote greater transparency and accountability, local authorities will need to publish information on their website by 30 September showing where this money has been spent.