Labour sets out stall as the party on the side of drivers, with plan to fix one million more potholes every year and take action on soaring costs
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Labour has today set out its costed plan to back drivers, by fixing
up to one million more potholes every year and cracking down on
soaring car insurance costs – saving drivers up to £250 in lower
repair costs alone. Under the Conservatives, Britain's roads have
become symbolic of the state of our country – they are plagued with
potholes that damage vehicles and push up insurance costs for
drivers. There are now 100 times more potholes on our roads than
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Labour has today set out its costed plan to back drivers, by fixing up to one million more potholes every year and cracking down on soaring car insurance costs – saving drivers up to £250 in lower repair costs alone. Under the Conservatives, Britain's roads have become symbolic of the state of our country – they are plagued with potholes that damage vehicles and push up insurance costs for drivers. There are now 100 times more potholes on our roads than there are craters on the moon. This is a cost-of-living issue that matters to millions of people. Pothole damage cost drivers almost £500 million last year, with the average damage worth £250. Car insurance costs have also spiralled out of control, increasing by more than £200 on average in just two years. This has been driven by damage from pothole-ridden roads, soaring inflation and rising car thefts. As well as bringing down costs for drivers and turning the tide on 14 years of neglect of our local roads, Labour's plan will break down bureaucratic barriers that leave projects bogged down in Britain's broken planning system.
Labour's Plan for Drivers will:
Labour will also end the sticking plaster approach to roads repairs by providing multi-year funding settlements to local leaders. This will change the way local authorities repair roads, supporting them to deliver longer-lasting repairs to local roads, prevent potholes forming in the first place, and secure better value for money for the taxpayer. The party's wider plans for better transport will also deliver for drivers by accelerating the electric vehicle charge-point rollout, reducing traffic on our roads by providing better buses and trains, and delivering a new road safety strategy to prevent tragic deaths and injuries. Labour's plan to fix up to one million additional potholes a year will be paid for by deferring the controversial A27 Bypass - which offers poor value for money - and spreading the £320 million funding for this project to local roads repairs across the country. Plans to break down planning barriers will help speed up other projects, including other planned upgrades along the A27. Louise Haigh, Labour's Shadow Transport Secretary, said: “Cars are a lifeline for millions up and down the country. They get people to work, allow parents to get kids to school and help carers support relatives – but drivers have been totally failed by this Conservative government. “The Conservatives have left Britain's roads plagued with potholes and have sat back as car insurance costs have spiralled out of control. “Labour is the only party truly on the side of drivers. Our plan will fix up to a million more potholes every year, saving drivers hundreds of pounds in lower repair costs, and will crack down on soaring car insurance costs. “We will make our roads safer for all who use them and remove the barriers which bog down our planning system, speeding up infrastructure improvements and cutting costs for taxpayers.” Ends Notes: Costings:
Labour would fund our plans to support local authorities to fix up to 1 million potholes a year by deferring the planned A27 Bypass, which has an estimated cost of at least £320 million. [1] Labour in Government will spread this funding as evenly as possible over the next Parliament, supporting local authorities to fix up to 1 million potholes per year, assuming average funding of around £64 million per year. Labour's analysis has calculated the cost per pothole fixed using a weighted average of the current cost of proactive and reactive road maintenance, with this figure adjusted for inflation over time. Labour's Plan for Drivers Funding Local Authorities to Fix 1 Million More Potholes Per Year There are now 100 times more potholes on UK roads than craters on the moon. [2] England's pothole crisis is a cost-of-living issue. Pothole damage cost drivers almost £500m last year, with the average damage worth £250. [3] But only a quarter of compensation claims for pothole damage are successful. [4] Labour's plan to fund local authorities to fix up to one million additional potholes a year will be paid for by deferring the controversial A27 Bypass and spreading the £320 million for this project to local roads repairs across the country. This will deliver better value for money for drivers and for taxpayers, with investment in local roads maintenance delivering around £6.50 in benefits for every pound spent, [5] compared to less than £2 from the A27 Bypass. [6] Labour will also end the sticking plaster approach to roads repairs by providing multi-year funding settlements to local leaders. This will change the way local authorities repair roads, supporting them to deliver longer-lasting repairs to local roads, prevent potholes forming in the first place, and secure better value for money for the taxpayer. Tackling Soaring Car Insurance Costs Average car insurance costs have soared by over £200 in just two years, [7] with estimates that 1 million people cancelled their car insurance due to cost-of-living pressures in 2022. [8] Labour will take action on soaring costs by calling in the Competition and Markets Authority and urging the Financial Conduct Authority to launch urgent investigations into the rising cost of car insurance, including investigating whether postcode pricing practices are unfairly targeting ethnic minorities and those on lower incomes. [9] [10] Breaking Down Planning Barriers Labour has set out plans to reform Britain's planning laws to grow our economy and get Britain building. [11] Labour will put an end to the culture of waste and inefficiency that blights the planning system and costs the taxpayer. Under the Tories our broken planning system has seen repeated delays to major infrastructure projects, with costs soaring as a result.
Labour's reforms will help deliver much needed upgrades to our
road network, including other planned upgrades along the A27.
Accelerating the Electric Vehicle Charging Rollout A Labour Government will accelerate the electric vehicle charging rollout by:
Reducing Traffic Labour has set out plans to reduce the traffic clogging up our roads, by improving the state of public transport to make it a more attractive choice:
A New Road Safety Strategy Labour will deliver a comprehensive, new road safety strategy to bring down traffic deaths and injuries on our roads:
Notes to Editors
[1] https://nationalhighways.co.uk/our-roads/south-east/a27-arundel-bypass/ [3] https://www.theaa.com/about-us/newsroom/pothole-partnership [4] [1] https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/cars/article-10711525/Claiming-pothole-damage-25-successful.html [6] A27 Bypass preferred ‘Grey Route': https://nationalhighways.citizenspace.com/he/a27-arundel-bypass-preferred-route-announcement/supporting_documents/A27_ArundelBypass_Scheme_Assessment_Report.pdf [7] https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/whats-happening-to-car-insurance-premiums-arTnq0Z643Yh [9] https://www.smf.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Insurance-and-the-poverty-premium-March-2023.pdf [11] https://labour.org.uk/missions/economic-growth/ [15] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/road-accidents-and-safety-statistics [16] https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2023-02-22/150393 |