Christopher Chope OBE MP, chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Highway Maintenance, has called for UK local authority asset management plans to be made mandatory as part of urgent action to prevent local roads from falling into further disrepair.
Chope made his anti-road deterioration rallying call during a reception to launch an APPG published report on local road condition.
The report recommends getting local roads into a satisfactory steady state for planned preventative maintenance as soon as possible; improving borrowing facilities to allow councils to prevent roads deteriorating further before additional maintenance funding promised by government for the six-years starting in 2015; making asset management plans mandatory in return for access to central government funds for road maintenance; allowing further devolution of highways funding decisions, by encouraging decisions on how local authorities can spend central funding allocated for capital outlay to be made locally; and optimising maintenance schedules across local and national strategic road networks, to minimise disruption to road users and the associated costs
The Group aims to foster understanding and awareness of the fundamental importance of the highway network. Deterioration in condition of the local road network has been the focus of numerous meetings.
“Everyone is aware of the poor condition of our roads, not least through feedback from our own constituents,” said Chope. “Having devoted numerous meetings to the topic and discussed it with various expert guests, we have reached the conclusion that there is only one question left to ask: Why isn’t more being done to improve the situation?”
To clarify the problem and solution, the1360 Asphalt Industry Alliance and the Institute of Highway Engineers sponsored APPG published report: Managing a valuable asset: improving local road condition draws on several expert reports on the subject published over recent years.
These include the Audit Commission’s final report (in 2011) Going the Distance: Achieving better value for money in road maintenance.
“The Audit Commission produced an excellent set of recommendations in 2011 yet the situation has not improved,” added Chope. “The poor condition of our local roads is not just a safety issue. Its impact on our environment and social well-being affects every one of us, as does the economic impact both for taxpayers generally and local business economies.
“The Group is hoping to take this forward with the Robert Goodwill MP, the Minister now responsible for load roads, in the near future.”
The local UK road network accounts for more than 95% of the country’s roads and its asset value is estimated at £300-£400billion. A total of 174 local authorities are responsible for roads across England and Wales.
A copy of the APPG published report can be downloaded from <%$Linker:2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 oLinkExternal here www.highwaysmaintenance.org/images/library/files/APPG_Report_-_Managing_a_valuable_asset.pdf false http://www.highwaysmaintenance.org/images/library/files/APPG_Report_-_Managing_a_valuable_asset.pdf false false %>
Chope made his anti-road deterioration rallying call during a reception to launch an APPG published report on local road condition.
The report recommends getting local roads into a satisfactory steady state for planned preventative maintenance as soon as possible; improving borrowing facilities to allow councils to prevent roads deteriorating further before additional maintenance funding promised by government for the six-years starting in 2015; making asset management plans mandatory in return for access to central government funds for road maintenance; allowing further devolution of highways funding decisions, by encouraging decisions on how local authorities can spend central funding allocated for capital outlay to be made locally; and optimising maintenance schedules across local and national strategic road networks, to minimise disruption to road users and the associated costs
The Group aims to foster understanding and awareness of the fundamental importance of the highway network. Deterioration in condition of the local road network has been the focus of numerous meetings.
“Everyone is aware of the poor condition of our roads, not least through feedback from our own constituents,” said Chope. “Having devoted numerous meetings to the topic and discussed it with various expert guests, we have reached the conclusion that there is only one question left to ask: Why isn’t more being done to improve the situation?”
To clarify the problem and solution, the
These include the Audit Commission’s final report (in 2011) Going the Distance: Achieving better value for money in road maintenance.
“The Audit Commission produced an excellent set of recommendations in 2011 yet the situation has not improved,” added Chope. “The poor condition of our local roads is not just a safety issue. Its impact on our environment and social well-being affects every one of us, as does the economic impact both for taxpayers generally and local business economies.
“The Group is hoping to take this forward with the Robert Goodwill MP, the Minister now responsible for load roads, in the near future.”
The local UK road network accounts for more than 95% of the country’s roads and its asset value is estimated at £300-£400billion. A total of 174 local authorities are responsible for roads across England and Wales.
A copy of the APPG published report can be downloaded from <%$Linker:
