The UK Parliament's Transport Committee has today (July 3) published a new report into Managing the impact of street works. The report references written evidence submitted by CIHT, and quotes CIHT Vice-President Kate Carpenter, who  took part in an oral evidence session held as part of the inquiry.  

‘Street works’ refers to works that take place when utility companies dig up roads to install or repair pipes and cables for gas, water, electricity and broadband. Street works often carry some unavoidable disruption. However, the report highlights evidence that the current regulatory regime leaves local authorities ill-equipped to monitor and coordinate utility companies’ street works, or to penalise poor performing companies.

The Committee’s report concludes that Local Authorities should be given new powers to limit disruption and congestion caused by street works.

Other recommendations from the Committee include calls for tighter controls on the use of ‘immediate’ or ‘urgent’ permits which allow utility companies to bypass local authorities before they start and guarantees that an excavated road will then be reinstated to a high standard. 

The Committee has also called for the Government to let all local highway authorities adopt ‘lane rental schemes’. Under these schemes, utility companies pay a charge for each day that works are carried out on a road – incentivising efficiency and completing works in a timely manner. 

In CIHT’s written evidence submission, we highlighted that ‘There are several mechanisms local authorities can use to help ensure that utility companies are compliant with standards and regulations when undertaking street works, such as permit and lane rental schemes, however there are limits to their effectiveness.’

In 2025, CIHT is producing a report on both street works and road works (works carried out to repair or improve the highway including footways, carriageways and street lighting.) The report will be published in Autumn 2025. For more information on the project, please contact the CIHT Policy Team at technical@ciht.org.uk.

CIHT looks forward to continuing to work with the Transport Committee on the topic of street works and assisting them with a variety of their inquiries.

CIHT also looks forward to working with the Department for Transport and Local Authorities to deliver the recommendations from the Transport Committees inquiry into ‘Managing the Impact of Street Works’.