Asked by: Bill Esterson (Labour - Sefton Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of using lower carbon warm mix asphalt in national road repairs.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department allocates pothole and highway maintenance capital funding to local highway authorities in England, outside of London, based on the length of roads, number of street lighting columns, and the number of bridges for which they are responsible. It is up to the respective highway authority how best to spend this funding to fulfil its statutory duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980, based on local knowledge, circumstances and priorities.
The Department strongly advocates a risk-based whole lifecycle asset management approach to local authority highways maintenance programmes. This considers all parts of the highway network, such as bridges, cycleways, and lighting columns – and not just the fixing of potholes.
The Department encourages good practice in local highway maintenance and endorses the UK Roads Leadership Group’s Code of Practice 'Well-managed highway infrastructure' - https://www.ciht.org.uk/ukrlg-home/code-of-practice/. The Code gives advice on all aspects of highway maintenance and Recommendation 32 gives advice on carbon reduction.
Decarbonisation is a key Government priority. Through the ADEPT Live Labs research programme, the Department is investing £30 million into seven projects aimed at reducing carbon by using sustainable materials and processes, such as warm-mix asphalts and asphalt modifiers.
Local highway authorities across England are set to benefit from a major boost in funding for highway maintenance, representing the biggest ever road resurfacing programme to improve local roads. My Department has published details of the £8.3 billion extra road funding which will make an unprecedented transformation in the condition of our highways.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding his Department allocated to Lincolnshire County Council for road repairs in each year since 2015.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department has allocated a total of £358.9 million capital grant funding through formula to Lincolnshire County Council for highway maintenance for the financial years 2015/16 to 2023/24.
This consists of £246.4 million for the Highways Maintenance Block (needs and incentive elements), £83.6 million for Pothole Action Fund, Potholes Fund, and Wet Weather Fund, £20.6 million from Budget top ups, and £4.9 million from the redirected HS2 funding as part of Network North.
A table with this breakdown can be found below:
Year | Highway Maintenance Block (£m) | Additional Pothole and Wet Weather funding (£m) | Budget Top Ups (£m) | Network North (£m) | Total (£m) |
2015/16 | 31.013 |
|
|
| 31.013 |
2016/17 | 30.169 | 1.804 |
|
| 31.973 |
2017/18 | 30.223 | 5.903 |
|
| 36.126 |
2018/19 | 30.193 | 1.772 | 13.747 |
| 45.712 |
2019/20 | 30.152 | 1.642 |
|
| 31.794 |
2020/21 | 30.152 | 20.909 |
|
| 54.373 |
2021/22 | 21.513 | 17.210 |
|
| 38.723 |
2022/23 | 21.513 | 17.210 |
|
| 38.723 |
2023/24 | 21.513 | 17.210 | 6.884 | 4.924 | 50.531 |
In addition to capital grant allocation formula funding, in February 2020 Lincolnshire County Council was awarded £3.65 million from the Highways Maintenance Challenge Fund towards resurfacing the A52 Roman Bank.
Apr. 15 2024
Source Page: Monitoring Noise and Vibration on the HS2 Phase One and 2a route (January 2024)Found: , vegetation maintenance , drainage works , water management , ditch maintenance , canal and highway
Feb. 05 2024
Source Page: Issuing section 50 street works licencesFound: Guidance Issuing section 50 street works licences Good practice for highway authorities
Mentions:
1: Sheryll Murray (Con - South East Cornwall) That would indicate that the only way to fund the maintenance costs and new infrastructure is from toll - Speech Link
2: Sheryll Murray (Con - South East Cornwall) In the meantime, I ask the Department for a contribution from National Highways towards the maintenance - Speech Link
3: Guy Opperman (Con - Hexham) bridges and tunnels on local public roads up and down the country that are operated either by the local highway - Speech Link
Asked by: Iain Stewart (Conservative - Milton Keynes South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department makes an assessment of the (a) quality and (b) durability of (i) pothole repairs, (ii) resurfacing and (c) other maintenance of local roads.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department works with both local highway authorities and National Highways to assess road surface condition across England annually. Local highway authorities undertake road condition surveys on their classified road networks, and their surveys identify road defects and provide an overall score of road condition. The latest data was published on gov.uk on 23 November 2023:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/road-conditions-in-england-to-march-2023
It is up to local highway authorities to determine how best to fulfil their statutory duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980, taking into account local circumstances and priorities. This includes decisions on the equipment, techniques, and materials used as part of their maintenance activities. The Department advocates a risk-based, whole-lifecycle-asset management approach that considers all parts of the highway network, and recommends that authorities follow the best practice guidance set out in the Well-managed Highway Infrastructure Code of Practice which is available via the website of the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation.
Asked by: Fiona Bruce (Conservative - Congleton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much funding his Department provided to Cheshire East Council for highways (a) maintenance and (b) improvements in the (i) 2022-23 and (ii) 2023-24 financial year.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Over the two years in question, the Department has provided a total of over £30 million to Cheshire East Council for highway maintenance, as set out in the table below. Over the same period the Department has also provided over £4 million to Cheshire East Council for small-scale transport improvements through the Integrated Transport Block. Further details are available on gov.uk.
Table showing funding provided to Cheshire East Council
Funding Stream | 2022/23 (£m) | 2023/24 (£m) | Total (£m) |
Highways Maintenance Block | 7.249 | 7.249 | 14.498 |
Potholes Fund | 5.799 | 5.799 | 11.598 |
Increase for 2023/24 announced in Budget 2023 |
| 2.319 | 2.319 |
Increase for 2023/24 announced as part of Network North programme |
| 1.658 | 1.658 |
Total Maintenance | 13.048 | 17.025 | 30.073 |
Integrated Transport Block | 2.003 | 2.003 | 4.006 |
Total | 15.051 | 19.028 | 34.079 |
The highway maintenance funding being provided in 2023/24 is a 30% increase on 2022/23.
Mentions:
1: Huw Merriman (Con - Bexhill and Battle) The resurfacing fund is £8.3 billion of investment in highway maintenance. Many hon. - Speech Link
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of trends in the number of potholes on the number of people cycling.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The number of people cycling depends on a range of factors including the availability and maintenance of safe, high-quality routes for cycling. Active Travel England and the Department are undertaking joint research to better understand journey quality which would consider the impact of potholes. In the meantime, the Department has announced an unprecedented £8.3 billion funding uplift for roads resurfacing over the next decade, which will enable local highway authorities to transform the state of their local roads.
Asked by: Tobias Ellwood (Conservative - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much reallocated HS2 funding has been given to Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council for road resurfacing.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Over the period 2023/24 to 2033/34 Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council will receive at least £18.9 million of reallocated HS2 funding for highways maintenance, including road resurfacing.
As I’ve previously set out, Network North will see every penny of the £19.8 billion committed to the Northern leg of HS2 reinvested in the North. Every penny of the £9.6 billion committed to the Midlands leg will be reinvested in the Midlands. The £6.5 billion saved through our rescoped approach at Euston will be spread across every other region in the country – and it is from this pot that this funding comes.
In line with the published allocations, the Department for Transport has paid £604,000 of this to Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council this financial year; the Council will receive the same amount in 2024/25. Future allocations are a matter for the next Spending Review.
This information, as with all highway maintenance funding allocations, is published on GOV.UK.