The Transport Secretary announced a new 30-point plan to support people’s freedom to use their cars and curb over-zealous enforcement measures.
Drivers will benefit from smoother, easier journeys thanks to the government’s new plan for drivers, including £70 million to keep traffic flowing and measures to speed up the rollout of electric vehicle charging.
The plan includes measures that could help councils increase spending on fixing potholes and road repairs by more than £100 million over 10 years, fining roadworks which overrun, new technology to simplify parking payment and updating 20mph zone guidance for England to prevent inappropriate blanket use
The government is also committed to exploring measures to speed up the installation of chargepoints for electric vehicles and extending grants to schools to install chargepoints.
Transport Secretary Mark Harper said: “We’re backing drivers and our new long-term plan will improve journeys for millions across the country, whether they’re commuting to work or college, parking up for a day trip, or charging their electric car.
“Our plan for drivers will support thousands of skilled jobs and help grow the economy, sitting alongside our continued record investment in public transport and active travel – ensuring people have the freedom to travel how they want.
“To help ease congestion, £70 million will be provided to councils this financial year in 3 different schemes to invest in improving traffic lights and signals, including AI tech to optimise traffic flow in city centres.
“Journeys will also be smoother and quicker with the digitisation of traffic regulation orders, which will pave the way for autonomous vehicles and make life easier for today’s motorists by ensuring satnavs have the most up-to-date information on the location of parking spaces, road closures and speed limits.
“These measures fulfil the government’s commitment to support families and grow the economy by making driving easier for the 50 million car licence holders in the UK. It will also help people make the switch to electric vehicles as the country continues its proportionate, balanced journey to net zero.”
The measures come on top of extending the temporary fuel duty cut for another year in March 2023 to save drivers a total of around £5 billion over the past 2 years.
The full plan for drivers will make journeys smoother by:
- strengthening guidance to make sure bus lanes operate only when buses are running
- guiding local authorities on allowing motorcycles to use bus lanes and holding a consultation about whether motorcycle access should be standard
- permitting red flashing lights for breakdown vehicles, helping to protect recovery drivers by making them more visible at the roadside
- supporting councils to introduce more lane rental schemes, which reduce roadworks by incentivising utilities to avoid the busiest roads at the busiest times
- consulting on requiring local authorities with lane rental schemes to use at least 50% of any surplus on pothole repairs or resurfacing
- consulting on extending fines for overrunning street works at weekends and increasing fixed penalty notices
- rolling out the Live Labs 2 programme to explore new, low-carbon and high-tech ways of managing local highway networks, supporting the transition to net zero carbon local roads and infrastructure
- developing a New Road Condition Data Standard to provide local authorities with access to new technologies enabling them more easily to identify and deal with road defects like potholes
- £30 million fund to upgrade traffic signal systems, replacing unreliable and obsolete equipment to improve reliability
- £20 million ‘Green Light Fund’ to tune up traffic signals to better reflect current traffic conditions and get traffic flowing
- £20 million to deploy advanced technology for traffic signals, making use of machine learning and AI to optimise traffic flow and balance traffic across city centres
Edmund King, AA president, said; “The AA has long campaigned, on behalf of our members, to tackle some councils using moving traffic violations, such as yellow box junctions, to fleece drivers – often caught in a trap of poor road markings and bad signage. We welcome this review and hope councils act accordingly. Our 2017 ‘Caught in a trap’ report** shared with Government ministers highlighted issues around moving traffic offences and yellow box junctions.
“Allowing breakdown vehicles to use flashing red lights will improve the safety of drivers and passengers in broken down cars, as well as offer more protection to our patrols working at the roadside.
“We are also pleased to see the wider rollout of ‘Lane Rental Schemes’ at roadworks and street works which seek to reduce poor and overrunning roadworks experienced across the country, including the issuing of fines. All road users will benefit as those digging up the road will be financially penalised for returning our streets in an awful condition.”
“The AA has been raising issues about the poor state of local roads, over-running roadworks, badly designed yellow box junctions, private parking companies, ‘smart’ motorways and much more for many years. Our members are also concerned about air quality, road safety and mobility. We also campaign on issues such as ‘Think Bikes’. Many of our members also interested in walking, cycling and public transport. We take a balanced approach to mobility where driving doesn’t have to cost the earth.
“The AA fully supports the use of targeted 20mph limits where they are needed and will be effective, for example, when pupils are going in or out of schools, near parks, cul de sacs and key residential areas. Drivers are much more likely to abide with the lower speed limit when they understand the reason for it. We would also like to see more pragmatic and variable speed limits, for example, using interactive signs outside schools at the start and end of the day but possibly not at 2am in the morning.
“Cars and road transport are paramount to how we live and work. Government figures show 58% of trips and 78% of distance travelled are made with cars, with most freight being transported by road.
“When implemented with local consultation and support, targeted road safety measures are supported by drivers and residents alike. Transport policy should be evidence-based and take account of all road users including drivers, cyclists, bikers, bus passengers, delivery drivers and pedestrians. Safety and environmental considerations are also key. For example, if the evidence shows there are no buses running after 10.30pm then it is logical to open the bus lane to all road users. “
to Liam Griffin, CEO at Addison Lee said: “We welcome plans set out by Government today to review the guidance on Low Traffic Neighbourhoods (LTNs) and focus on local consent.
As London’s most reliable private hire provider, we have always recognised the importance of safety measures. However, extensive road blocks and consistent lowering of speed limits to 20mph has an impact on congestion across the capital – significantly, and often unnecessarily, impacting the work, lives, and productivity of both Londoners and London businesses.
Operating in the capital for over 50 years, we have an intricate understanding of the neighbourhoods across our city. We would welcome the opportunity to work more closely with the Mayor and local boroughs to help find the right solutions that support seamless travel for all across the city.”
Toby Poston, BVRLA Director of Corporate Affairs, said: “The zero emission motoring elements of this plan show that the Government is focusing on some of the key barriers to wider electric vehicle adoption. Delivering faster grid connections, tackling the challenge of on-street charging and debunking common EV myths are great places to start.”
Steve Cole, RoSPA’s Executive Head of Policy, Campaigns, and Public Affairs, said: “While we value the Government’s financial commitment to the road safety fund made in April this year, recent statistics show that there could not be a more urgent need for its long-overdue UK Road Safety Strategy, which elapsed in 2019.
“While the UK was once a beacon for road safety, progress has now come to a grinding halt, with fatalities and injuries plateauing, and an average of 81 people killed on our roads, every day of the year – an unacceptable and shocking toll.
“We must not forget, our pledge for safer roads is not a ‘war on motorists’, this is about using evidence-based approaches to keep people safe, and we implore the Government to release a new UK Road Safety Strategy which is vital to everyone’s wellbeing – motorists included.”
Twenty mile per hour zones have been under fierce debate in recent weeks, with Wales introducing its 20 mile per hour speed limit and rumours of the Government putting the brakes on local council 20 mile per hour zone decision-making.
Cole continued: “We are pleased to see the Government move from a legislative position on 20 mile per hour zones and low traffic neighbourhoods to a guidance position. We know that 20 mile per hour speed limits can result in 40 per cent fewer collisions and a seven-fold reduction in deaths[1].
“We firmly believe that local Government, practitioners, drivers and communities know their roads far better than Westminster and should therefore not be subject to blanket decision-making from Westminster, so welcome the Government’s recognition of this.”
