Asked by: Ranil Jayawardena (Conservative - North East Hampshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the Answer of 9 September 2019 to Question 287534 on Roads: Repairs and Maintenance, what his policy is on the hypothecation of Vehicle Excise Duty to roads spending.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
Revenue raised through English Vehicle Excise Duty is being reinvested into the English road network between 2020-2025 to fund road enhancement projects including the second Road Investment Strategy (RIS2), which is the largest ever investment in England’s motorways and A Roads.
Spending Review 2021 confirmed £24 billion of strategic roads investment between 2020 and 2025 and over £8 billion investment for local roads maintenance and enhancements over this Parliament to fill millions of potholes a year, resurface roads and repair bridges, as well as delivering vital local road upgrades.
Spring Budget 2023 also provided an additional £200m in 23-24 to maintain and improve local roads. This increase will enable local authorities in England to fix more potholes, complete resurfacing, and invest in major repairs and renewals, such as keeping bridges and major structures open. The increase is expected to fix the equivalent of up to four million additional potholes across the country.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of periods of extreme heat on (a) rail, (b) roads, (c) shipping and (d) air travel.
Answered by Wendy Morton
Extreme heat can cause disruption on the railway due to issues such as overhead powerlines sagging in the heat, the increased likelihood of lineside fires, and rail buckling (when rails expand and curve). The department continues to support the rail industry as they work to ensure mitigations, such as emergency speed restrictions, are implemented to protect infrastructure and ensure both passenger and staff welfare.
National Highways’ motorways and major A roads are highly resilient to extremes of weather, including hot weather. The design and build standards applied to these roads are considered best practice and are adopted by other countries around the world. Where issues occur, such as heat damage on the A14 on 18 July, repairs are carried out so that roads can re-open as soon as possible.
Local highway authorities have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980, as amended, to maintain the highways network in their area. The Act does not set out specific standards of maintenance, as it is for each local highway authority to assess which parts of its network need repair and what standards should be applied, based upon their local knowledge and circumstances.
Ports all have contingency plans in place and, where necessary, will suspend operations if weather conditions pose a risk to safety. Ultimately, the decision rests with the port as they all operate on a commercial basis.
Safety is an utmost priority and therefore in extreme heat airports have increased monitoring of operations, including the aerodynamics of an aircraft, runway temperatures and the operational environment for staff and passengers. The sector has well-rehearsed plans in place to manage with heat and mitigate the effect upon operations.
Asked by: Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the backlog of road repairs nationally; and what assessment they have made of the impact such repairs will have on (1) communities, and (2) the economy.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland the responsibility for maintaining the highway rests with the respective devolved administrations.
In England, National Highways is responsible for the strategic road network, that is motorways and major A roads. On the local road network local highway authorities have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the highways network in their area.
Whilst the Government does not intervene in local highway maintenance decisions, we are providing over £2.7 billion funding for local highways maintenance for local authorities outside of London and City Region areas over the next three years.
The Department for Transport encourages good practice in local highway maintenance for all local highway authorities and endorses the UK Roads Liaison Group’s Code of Practice on Well Managed Highway Infrastructure.
Asked by: Huw Merriman (Conservative - Bexhill and Battle)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to paragraphs 18 to 21 of the Government Response to the Transport Select Committee’s Third Report on the Rollout and safety of smart motorways, HC 26, published on 12 January 2022, whether (a) motorway service stations, (b) slip roads and (c) hard shoulders are defined as emergency refuge areas by National Highways in its work retrofitting all-lane running motorways.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
In the Government’s response to the Transport Committee report published in January 2022, we announced that we would be committing £390 million to add around 50% more places to stop in an emergency by 2025, giving drivers added reassurance. National Highways is currently developing a detailed programme of work which will set out the type and location of emergency areas to be delivered.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether contracts have been issued for smart motorway projects on the (a) M62, (b) M40 and (c) M42 as of 24 November 2021; and what his planned timetable is for commencing that work on those motorways.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
We are currently considering the Transport Committee’s recommendations contained in its report, Rollout and safety of smart motorways, and their practical applications, and will be providing a formal response in due course.
Contracts have been previously issued for smart motorways projects on the (a) M62 Junctions 20 to 25 and the M40/M42 Interchange, which is treated as one scheme.
Early design and enabling works contracts were awarded in early 2019 for the M62 Junctions 20 to 25 and M40/M42 Interchange, with work commencing late 2019. This included detailed surveys, hard shoulder strengthening and limited site clearance. Full detailed design was awarded on 11 June 2020 followed by full construction works on 23 October 2020 through a package contract to the Smart Motorways Alliance.
Main construction works for the M62 Junctions 20 to 25 is scheduled for January 2023. Main construction works for the M40/42 Interchange commenced in October 2021 with limited vegetation clearance and ecological mitigation for communications cable diversions.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many additional smart motorway emergency refuges have (a) been constructed and (b) have entered the design phase since the publication of his Department's report entitled Smart Motorway Evidence Stocktake and Action Plan, published on 12 March 2020.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
Since 12 March 2020, 10 additional emergency areas have been installed on the M25, in line with Action 5 of the Smart Motorway Evidence Stocktake and Action Plan. A further 27 emergency areas have been built as part of new upgrades currently in construction and which come into use as those projects open to traffic.
In March 2020, there were 23.86 miles of smart motorway covered by stopped vehicle detection (SVD) technology. At the end of December 2020, there will be 36.78 miles. This is in line with Highways England’s programme to install SVD on all existing all lane running (ALR) sections of the motorway network, by March 2023, which it is on course to achieve.
Asked by: Sarah Olney (Liberal Democrat - Richmond Park)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of The Times investigation which recently found that 4,000 of about 9,000 bridges and large culverts on motorways or A-roads showed evidence of defects or damage that may significantly affect their capacity.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
All bridges and structures on the Strategic Road Network are regularly inspected by Highways England to ensure that they remain safe to operate. Through regular inspection, Highways England is also able to plan maintenance works in a way that minimises disruption for road users.
Identification of damage or defects, which can include cosmetic defects, does not mean a structure is unsafe. Where defects or damage is detected, further detailed engineering inspections are undertaken to determine the cause and whether maintenance is required. If repairs are needed, they will be appropriately prioritised and included in Highways England’s ongoing maintenance programme.
Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Departments policy is on the maximum desirable length of roadworks on motorways.
Answered by Grant Shapps - Secretary of State for Defence
When designing its road works, Highways England uses the guidance provided in the Department for Transport published Traffic Signs Manual: Chapter 8. This recommends that road works are limited to a maximum of 6km (around 3 and ¾ miles), although the adoption of longer lengths of road works is permissible providing they do not create unacceptable impacts. Where longer lengths of road works are adopted, site specific risk assessments are required to identify the safe maximum length. Limiting all road works to a maximum length would increase both costs and duration of some works due to the activities undertaken.
Asked by: Nia Griffith (Labour - Llanelli)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether it is his Department’s policy to include in contracts for motorway maintenance and upgrade work (a) penalty clauses for contractors failing to complete work within an agreed time frame and (b) set hours during which such work is to be carried out in order to (i) minimise disruption at peak times and (ii) ensure timely completion of that work.
Answered by George Freeman
Highways England’s contractual arrangements for contractors that maintain and repair the Strategic Road Network provides for both financial reward and penalty depending on performance against the agreed cost for work undertaken. There is also redress for poor quality including non-compliance with contract, standards, or statutory obligation, and for failure to deliver to agreed timetables; ranging from contractors having to bear the cost of correcting defective work through to contract termination.
Works are planned and scheduled so as to minimize disruption whilst not compromising value for money.
Asked by: Baroness Randerson (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address the increasing costs of pothole-related problems on motorways and A roads.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
Highways England is responsible for the motorways and main A-roads in England. It is spending £5bn on maintenance and renewals, which includes spend on resurfacing and pothole repairs, in the first Road Investment Strategy period (2015-2020).
Highways England is also working with its suppliers to improve the performance of road surface materials so that the service life is prolonged, helping to reduce the number of potholes in future. As part of this work, Highways England has ongoing road trials of new and innovative products.