Road works are a constant gripe for motorists.

While everyone appreciates maintenance and improvement work has to be carried out, sometimes it just seems as the=ought the cones and barriers are there whilst no road workers are.

In an attempt to cut down on som of the unnecessary disruption, the Government has now published new proposals.

These will increase fines handed out to utility companies for street works that overrun.

While you wait

Currently,  fines are only issued for disruption on working days. Ministers want to extend the £10,000 per day fine into weekends and bank holidays to deter disruption when roads are at their busiest.

They also want fines to double, from £500 up to a maximum of £1,000, for companies who breach conditions of the job, such as working without a permit.

The measures have been set out in a street works consultation launched by roads minister Guy Opperman.

“Too often traffic jams are caused by overrunning street works,” he said. “This Government is backing drivers, with a robust approach to utility companies and others, who dig up our streets.”

Sharing the load

The plans include a proposal to allocate 50% of the money received to be used to improve roads and repair potholes.

These ‘lane rental schemes’ allow local highway authorities to charge companies for the time that street and road works occupy the road.

It is estimated by the Department for Transport (DfT) that these measures could generate up to an additional £100 million for road repairs over the next 10 years.

It comes on top of the Government announcement last year to invest £8.3bn remedying the crumbling road infrastructure. This money comes from the governments cancelling of large parts of the HS2 railway. It is believed to be enough to fully resurface more than  5,000 miles of roads.

The Asphalt Industry Alliance (AIA) has previously reported that more than 100,000 miles or the road network could continue deteriorating to the point of needing to be rebuilt within the next 15 years. Cutting funding for road maintenance over the last decade has left roads in a bad state of disrepair, with potholes being a huge public issue.

Smoother running

The DfT says that the two million street works carried out in England (2022/2023) have cost the economy around £4bn. This is mainly through causing severe road congestion and disrupting journeys.

The Government introduced a performance-based ‘street works regime’ last year. Utility companies are required to resurface roads to the best possible standard. This new lane rental scheme will see utility companies charged up to £2,500 per day for street works.

The AA’s president, Edmund King, says: “We are pleased that the Government is looking to extend the fines for over-running street works, invest more of the surplus fines in roads and ensure that those who dig up the roads repair them to a high and timely standard.”

In addition, the Government plans to make all temporary, experimental or permanent restrictions on traffic digital. It would mean that modern satnav and vehicle information systems should make drivers aware of restrictions in order to reduce inconvenience and congestion.

The so-called ‘Traffic Regulation Orders’ (TROs) include things like the location of parking spaces, road closures and speed limits.