Proposals for a massive expansion in lane rental charging took a step forward today. The Regulatory Policy Committee (RPC) had previously rejected the Department for Transport (DfT) impact assessment of two trials, in Kent and London, but have now deemed them as 'fit for purpose’. Read the report here.The department now proposes to allow other local authorities to seek the Secretary of State’s approval for lane rental schemes of their own, with up to 30 expected to apply.

Lane rental schemes are seen by DfT as an important part of solving the issue of 2.5 million road works which costs the economy almost £4 billion in England alone each year. By charging for the impacts these works have on the network the aim is to;

• Reduce the length of time taken to carry out the works
• Improve planning, coordination and working methods
• Carry out more works outside of peak times, for example, making greater use of weekend and evening working where the local environmental impact was acceptable
• Complete works to the required standard first time and with a permanent reinstatement, reducing the need for the works promoter to return to the site to carry out remedial work (DfT, 2018)

The RPC report estimates that the initial cost for local authorities setting up schemes will be approximately £7.62 million, with £2.19 million annual running costs. However these are compensated for with estimated annual savings of £205.89 million per annum to the wider economy as a result of reduced congestion. Further TfL figures show that rolling out the scheme throughout London will result in total benefits of £142.9 million.

Wider implementation is sure to be controversial as Bob Gallienne, CEO of Street Works UK said when plans for expansion were first announced: "There is a worry it will add an extra layer of complexity on top of the myriad schemes that are currently in place and that it could inhibit the roll-out of major infrastructure schemes."

CIHT is currently developing a major report on the state of local roads in England and Wales, read more here, or our recent blog post on the topic here.

The trial schemes were enabled by section 74A of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 and the Street Works (charges for occupation of the highway) (England) Regulations 2012 (the 2012 regulations).

The RPC rate the quality of evidence and analysis supporting new regulatory and deregulatory proposals, and check the estimates for the equivalent annual net cost to business of new regulations