22.08.11
DfT plans new ‘lane rental’ roadworks scheme
‘Lane rental’ schemes for utility companies to incentivise them to do roadworks at quieter periods are being planned by the Department for Transport.
Local authorities would be able to charge the utility companies for disrupting traffic at peak periods – rather than applying a standard daily rate, as happened in a 2002-4 lane rental pilot scheme in Camden and Middlesbrough which was later judged to have had little effect.
Transport Secretary Philip Hammond is launching a consultation on the plans, under which revenue raised would have to be used on congestion prevention measures.
He said: “Everyone knows how frustrating it can be when you are sat in a traffic jam, unable to get to work or drop off the children at school because someone is digging up the road.
“This disruption is expensive as well as inconvenient, with one estimate valuing the loss to the economy from roadworks congestion at £4bn a year. We simply cannot afford this.
“That is why I am putting forward proposals which would incentivise utility companies and local authorities to carry out their works at times when they will cause the minimum disruption to the travelling public.”
The charges would have to be proportionate to the cost of congestion, and the schemes would have to be approved by the Department for Transport.
Under the plans, councils will also have to ensure that when they carry out their own roadworks, they too minimise disruption at busy periods.
Councils are also being encouraged to ensure that their own roadworks are done at times which least inconvenience motorists.
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