The Transport Committee has launched an investigation into limiting 'the damage and disruption' that utility works can have on England’s roads and pavements.
MPs on the cross-party committee said they would examine how 'better management, regulation and enforcement' could help, including the effectiveness of fines for utility companies that mismanage their works.
They will also look into the inspection scheme that was introduced in 2023 and the local authority lane rental system, which charges utilities for working on the busiest roads and at the busiest times.
The committee is considering to what extent lane rental incentivises timely completion of works, as well as other potential examples of best practice such as co-ordinating works between utility companies.
Committee chair Ruth Cadbury said the committee 'will investigate how street works can best be managed to minimise disruption and damage to roads and traffic, and be better co-ordinated'.
A spokesperson for Street Works UK, the UK trade association representing utilities and their contractors, welcomed the inquiry, stating lane rental schemes are 'an issue we have long raised with government'.
'The inquiry gives the street works sector an opportunity to showcase its daily contributions, outline barriers affecting the delivery of critical works, and propose solutions for balancing vital works with minimising disruption,' the spokesperson added.
The committee is calling for written evidence submissions by 11.59 on 21 January 2025, that respond to the following terms of reference.
- the effect of utility works on road and pavement surface quality and on maintenance needs and costs, and how local authorities can manage this
- whether local authorities have sufficient powers and resources to manage the effect of street works on congestion, travel disruption, pavement access and accessibility
- the effectiveness of processes for notification of works and obtaining permits, including the classification of emergency works and opportunities for coordinated works, and what makes for a good working relationship between utility companies and highway authorities
- whether fines are a sufficient deterrent to poor practice, whether other enforcement mechanisms would work better, and whether the inspections regime introduced in 2023 has improved the quality of reinstatement works
- whether lane rental is a successful model, the potential merits of making it available in more areas, and what other tools or best practices could be more widely adopted.
