Asked by: Alex Mayer (Labour - Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if her Department will make an estimate of the cost of closing roads during flooding in (a) Bedfordshire and (b) nationally in September.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Department recognises the profound importance of our country’s road network in moving people, goods, and services around the country. The economic impact of closing roads will vary greatly depending on the roads in question and on the scale and severity of the flooding.
The Government does not routinely make a detailed estimate of the economic impact of particular road closures of this sort, either in Bedfordshire or nationally. These are matters for local highway authorities. Bedford Council and Central Bedfordshire Council, as the relevant local highway authorities for Bedfordshire, are responsible for the management of their respective local networks, including making operational network decisions in the event of severe weather events including flooding.
On a national basis, management of the highway network is the responsibility of over 150 highway authorities in England, who make operational decisions based on the scope and severity of severe weather affecting their area.
Asked by: Anna Sabine (Liberal Democrat - Frome and East Somerset)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps National Highways takes with other road agencies to help ensure there is minimal disruption when there are roadworks.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
National Highways work in collaboration with Local Highway Authorities (LHA) to minimise disruption to motorists during roadworks, this includes seeking agreement from LHAs for suitable diversion routes.
For longer-term works, National Highways engage with LHAs as well as other key parties to ensure that stakeholders directly affected by roadworks are consulted and their views considered in plans, and if necessary, diversion routes revised.
During major closures, National Highways’ National Traffic Operations Centre will use its network of electronic roadside variable message signs (VMS) to tell motorists of any adverse impact. Using this strategic information signing, National Highways will endeavour to keep traffic upon its own network so as not to overwhelm local roads.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an estimate of the proportion of the road network that was restricted due to (a) roadworks and (b) closures on 22 July 2024.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
My Department does not collect information on road closures and we are not able to make an assessment of the proportion of the road network that was restricted. Roads are managed by either National Highways or local highway authorities, depending on the road in question.
The Department does hold data on the number of utility street and authority road works carried out in England via its Street Manager service for planning and managing works. The latest data available is for June 2024 which showed that 172,753 number of works took place that month.
Asked by: Sarah Bool (Conservative - South Northamptonshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to amend the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 to require local consultation for event traffic road closures.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
As she/the Honourable Member will appreciate, this Government is still in its early stages, and is carefully considering next steps in this policy area.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government what obligations the Highways Agency is under to keep motorways free of detritus.
Answered by Lord Davies of Gower - Shadow Minister (Home Office)
The responsibility for clearing highway litter and sweeping carriageways is governed by the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (EPA); National Highways is responsible for litter collection on motorways and some trunk roads. National Highways works to the ‘Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse 2006' issued under section 89(7) of the EPA. National Highways inspects and grades litter and detritus on the Strategic Road Network (SRN) in accordance with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse. National Highways carries out litter picking almost every day and weekly inspections on its network, to ensure that clearance of the worst affected areas is prioritised. Wherever possible planned closures are used to undertake litter picks to minimise disruption to road users.
Asked by: Tim Loughton (Conservative - East Worthing and Shoreham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure National Highways keeps (a) roads and (b) verges clear of litter.
Answered by Guy Opperman
National Highways survey and grade the Strategic Road Network in accordance with The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ Code of Practice for Litter and Refuse. National Highways teams patrol the Strategic Road Network and collect litter daily where it is safe to do so. National Highways carries out weekly inspections on its network, ensuring that it prioritises the clearance of the worst affected areas. National Highways also takes advantage of planned closures for other works to undertake additional litter picks.
National Highways’ grading activities are reported and monitored via its corporate Performance Indicator of the percentage of the Strategic Road Network where litter is graded at A or B as defined in the Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse.
National Highways strategy is to simultaneously reduce the need for litter picking and collection by encouraging behavioural change whilst also providing an effective litter clearing service. National Highways takes a data-led approach to litter clearing activities to ensure that litter hotspots are quickly identified and that resources are targeted effectively. In 2023-24, National Highways collected over 50,000 bags of litter from roads under its supervision.
The Office for Road and Rail, as Highways Monitor, also plays an important role in monitoring National Highways in areas such as litter on behalf of the Secretary of State, ensuring National Highways deliver its commitments as set out in the Roads Investment Strategy and holding National Highways to account for its licence commitments.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department is taking steps help to prevent road closures during periods in which roadworks are not taking place.
Answered by Guy Opperman
Works by utility companies are necessary to repair or maintain their apparatus, but they should be completed as soon as possible to minimise disruption to traffic. Highway authorities have a duty under section 59 of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 to co-ordinate works taking place on their roads to manage their networks effectively and safely. The Government published updated guidance to them on this in April 2023.
Part of this coordination requires that undertakers, mostly utility companies, must give notice to the relevant highway authority in advance of non-emergency works and proposed traffic management. Any utility overstaying their agreed period in the highway is subject to overrun charges up to £10,000 per day subject to certain criteria.
We announced in the Plan for Drivers ( https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/plan-for-drivers/the-plan-for-drivers) proposals to introduce weekend overrun charges, to close the loophole that means no charges can be imposed for works that overrun at the weekend, and an increase in the fines for utility companies pay for not complying with the law.
We are also supporting further roll out of lane rental, a charging regime highway authorities can use to help reduce congestion on the busiest roads at the busiest times. We look forward to seeing more schemes being developed this year.
Asked by: Chloe Smith (Conservative - Norwich North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 29 November 2023 to Question 3454 on Driving, what steps his Department plans to take to implement the smoother journeys measures in the Plan for Drivers; and what his Department's planned timetable is for implementing those measures.
Answered by Guy Opperman
Work is already underway for each of the 30 measures in “The Plan for Drivers”, with many expected to be completed by summer 2024.
Among the actions on smoother journeys that we expect to take in the next couple of months are to publish refreshed guidance on making better use of bus lanes and smarter road closures, and to launch public consultations on fixing roads faster and encouraging efficient street works. In addition, the Live Labs 2 programme is in place and will continue through to May 2031.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has received any information on the cleanliness standard of the M25 embankments, carriageways, hard shoulders, slip roads around Junction 25.
Answered by Richard Holden - Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
National Highways confirms that the most recent assessment of Junction 25 of the M25 was carried out on 7 April 2023 and the area was scored as a Grade B (Predominately free of litter and refuse apart from some small items). This area is next due to be graded on 21 April 2023.
NH has carried out litter collections on the slip roads over the course of the last two weeks. They have the following planned closures booked to address litter collections and other maintenance activities in the area; M25 Junctions 25 to 27 on the 15th to 19th May; and M25 Junctions 27 to 25 on the 22nd to 26th May.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking with relevant local stakeholders to tackle fly tipping near motorways in (a) the UK and (b) Leicestershire.
Answered by Steve Double
We commissioned WRAP to deliver a pilot fly-tipping intervention grant to help local authorities trial new approaches to tackle fly-tipping at hotspots. This includes a project trialling the use of AI enabled CCTV in conjunction with automatic number plate recognition to tackle fly-tipping at motorway laybys. If successful, this intervention could be replicated by others.
We understand that enforcement plays a key role in tackling fly-tipping. In a new trial, National Highways will be collecting evidence of littering and fly-tipping across the Strategic Road Network and will be working with relevant local authorities to support prosecution.
National Highways also supports local authorities in Leicestershire, as with other counties, to reduce the cost of removing waste on the trunk roads they are responsible for by providing opportunities for them to share their upcoming traffic management and road closures.