Asked by: Michael Gove (Conservative - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the Mayor of London on roadworks in London; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Andrew Jones
Ministers and officials at the Department for Transport hold regular meetings with representatives of Transport for London at which a range of issues are discussed, including roadworks. The Secretary of State has not recently held discussions with the Mayor of London on this particular matter.
Asked by: Michael Gove (Conservative - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what guidance on the duration and timing of works Highways England gives to its contractors operating on the M3 between junctions 2 and 4a.
Answered by John Hayes
There is a contractual agreement between Highways England and its contractor to achieve best value for money in meeting the timescales specified in Highways England’s Delivery Plan. This outlines the legislation, standards, guidance and criteria to adhere to, including shift patterns and ensuring minimal disruption to the travelling public and to the local neighbourhood.
Highways England also dictates the periods when additional lane or full closure can only take place, which are usually overnight and depend on low traffic flows. The M3 J2-4a scheme is on target to open for traffic by 30 June 2017.
Asked by: Michael Gove (Conservative - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will place in the Library a list of public consultations, White Paper and other documents his Department plans to publish to assist the UK in making effective the Government's plans for the UK to leave the EU within the two year timetable from the triggering of Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty.
Answered by Andrew Jones
On 2 February the Government published a White Paper setting out its objectives and plans for the new partnership we want to build with the EU. The Department currently has no plans for further publications. Any future publications would be deposited in the library of the House in the usual way.
Asked by: Michael Gove (Conservative - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what limitations government guidance places on the duration and timing of roadworks in urban areas; and if he will introduce lane rental or other means of shortening the length of time required for such work.
Answered by Andrew Jones
Local highway authorities are able to choose one of two regimes for managing street works on all roads. The New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 (as amended) sets out arrangements for noticing. This only applies to works carried out by utility companies, who simply need to submit a notice to the authority of the works they plan to carry out. The Traffic Management Act 2004 brought in more proactive permitting schemes. Permitting applies to works carried out by both utilities and local authorities. Utilities have to pay a small administration fee with their application. Around 60% of local authorities have now adopted permit schemes and these are seeing reductions in the duration of works as a result.
The Government is working closely with the sector to take forward a programme to improve the management and coordination of works. We would like to see those 40% of local authorities still using noticing adopt permit schemes, especially as these apply to all works on all roads. We have just commissioned an independent evaluation of existing permit schemes to quantify the impact they have had on the duration of works, and to identify the costs and benefits of setting these up. We have begun work on the Street Manager project that is going to look at how we might improve the way that data is collected and shared, and how we can use this data to co-ordinate activities on the highway more effectively. We will also continue to look at ways to simplify a complex legal framework, so that we can reduce overall works duration and minimise the impact on road users and local communities.
We plan to consult in summer 2017 on the future of lane rental schemes which are aimed at helping local authorities manage works on the busiest roads at the busiest times. The consultation will consider the full range of options.