Give councils stronger powers to get a grip of disruptive street works, MPs say
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Local authorities should be given new powers to limit disruption
and congestion caused by street works, the Transport Committee has
said. ‘Street works' refers to when utility companies dig up
roads to install or repair pipes and cables for gas, water,
electricity and broadband. The term is different to ‘road works'
–maintaining roads and filling potholes. In a report
published 3 July, ‘managing the impact of street works', the
cross-party Committee...Request free
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Local authorities should be given new powers to limit disruption and congestion caused by street works, the Transport Committee has said. ‘Street works' refers to when utility companies dig up roads to install or repair pipes and cables for gas, water, electricity and broadband. The term is different to ‘road works' –maintaining roads and filling potholes. In a report published 3 July, ‘managing the impact of street works', the cross-party Committee calls for tighter controls on the use of ‘immediate' or ‘urgent' permits which allow utility companies to bypass local authorities before they start, and guarantees that an excavated road will then be reinstated to a high standard. MPs also call for the Government to let all local highway authorities adopt ‘lane rental schemes'. Under these schemes, utility companies pay a charge for each day that works are carried out on a road – incentivising efficiency. The inquiry leading up to this report heard that if roads are reinstated to a poor standard following street works, it increases the chances of cracks and potholes appearing later on, and councils being left to put things right with yet more road works. Around 2.2 million street and road works were carried out in England between April 2023 and March 2024. Over 200 organisations have the right to dig up roads. More street works will be needed to meet government objectives on new housing developments and installing electric vehicle infrastructure. In many cases, some level of disruption is unavoidable when street works need to be carried out to keep services running. But the Committee heard overwhelming evidence from local authorities that the current regulatory regime leaves them ill-equipped to monitor and coordinate utility companies' street works, or to penalise companies that behave badly. And the disruption is felt by all road users, including HGVs, buses, emergency services and pedestrians. A summary of the report's recommendations is included below. Transport Committee Chair Ruth Cadbury said: “Street works are essential. Ageing infrastructure inevitably needs maintaining, and new cables and pipes will need laying as more housing is built across the country. “But as every road user knows, street works can feel like a recurring nightmare. The complaints are all too familiar: temporary traffic lights appearing overnight on a road that was already dug up a few months ago, sites left unattended on weekends, works overrunning, lorries diverted down roads too small for them, and disabled people often unable to negotiate their way around the site safely. People are left wondering, ‘why does the council let this happen?'. I've also heard from site workers who too often face the wrath of the travelling public. “Our report sets out a shopping list of small changes that could make a huge difference, sharpening the teeth of the regulations that already exist while also providing incentives to for utility companies to work efficiently and coordinate their work with councils. “Upping the quality of reinstatement works will help stem the never-ending plague of potholes on local roads. Lane rental schemes should provide a financial incentive to complete works on time. And longer-term planning and earlier notification should help councils prevent the infuriating occurrence of multiple roads being closed in one locality, or the same road being dug up multiple times in one year.” Our recommendations Extend the reinstatement period Current regulations in England say that utility companies are responsible for the quality of the road surfaces they have reinstated for two years after street works have completed, or for three years for deeper excavations. This is despite research showing that reinstatements carried out properly usually last over ten years. The Committee recommends that this guarantee period for reinstatements should be extended to five years. At present, if cracks begin to appear after just two years the local council will be forced to spend taxpayers' money on patching the road up again. This change will incentivise companies to do a better job in the first place. Tighten the use of immediate permits Immediate and urgent permits enable companies to dig up roads with little or no notice given to the local authority. They are essential in situations such as a burst water main causing localised flooding. But the Department for Transport (DfT) should consult on a new definition that prevents the use of these permits, for example, when a company had known for a while that the work in question needed doing. Options could include introducing a new category of immediate permit which accommodates work to maintain the supply of a service but is not going to be fixed immediately, or reforming immediate permits so that the level of advance warning required is linked to the severity of disruption. DfT should also consider whether fines could also be used against companies which are found to have misused immediate permits. Lane rental schemes A small number of local authorities already have Government approval to use lane rental schemes. Under the schemes, a utility company is charged per day that the street works are carried out on an area's busiest roads. The current daily charges are up to £2,500 per day, with the higher fees charged for work on the busiest highways at the busiest times. The Government has said it will consider letting Mayoral Strategic Authorities approve their own lane rental schemes, whilst in other areas this approval will remain with the Secretary of State. The Committee argues that DfT should go further and let more local authorities set up their own schemes without the need for approval from the Secretary of State. Longer-term planning DfT has guidance in place that encourages, but does not require, utility companies to share ‘forward planning information' on the Street Manager system and encourages local authorities and utility companies to identify opportunities to coordinate work. This should avoid multiple companies digging up the same area of road in short succession by going in together. The Committee urges DfT to make this a requirement. MPs also say this should apply during construction of large new housing developments. A Street Works Commissioner DfT should consider setting up a Street Works Commissioner in England, similar to the Road Works Commissioner in Scotland, to help ensure the consistent application and interpretation of legislation, provide an option for independent dispute resolution between councils and companies, and monitor performance across the sector. This would provide clarity for the street works industry and help promote good practice. ENDS Note to editors
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