A new study by Queen’s University Belfast has cast doubt on the efficacy of 20mph zones in Northern Ireland’s capital. The report found that road collisions were only reduced by 2% and casualties by 5% since the city centre enforced the lower speed limit in certain areas.

Across the UK, city councils are increasingly adopting 20mph zones. Transport for London plans to extend the speed limit across an additional five boroughs for 2023, and local authorities are implementing 20mph as a norm for most urban and village streets.

This change has led to reductions in casualties of between 20% and 40% in cities like Edinburgh, Calderdale, Bristol, Cheshire West and Chester, Bath, Warrington, and many more.

Rod King MBE, founder and campaign director at 20’s Plenty for Us, has questioned the validity of the university’s study, suggesting that the report’s results are completely atypical when compared to the rest of the UK.

In Edinburgh, he notes that casualties have fallen by an impressive 39%, and collisions by 40% since slower speed limits were introduced.

King suggests that there were some key flaws in the methodology, stating: “The implementation in Belfast was on just 76 streets in the city centre, on which the average vehicle speed was well below 20mph. Of these 76 streets, 27 were already fully or partially pedestrianised.

“There was also little community engagement or marketing of the 20mph scheme. The total cost of the scheme was just £10,000.”

King also proposes a number of key success factors in the effective introduction of 20mph rules, which include:

• Making 20mph the norm city-wide, as these zones are more effective than if they are  limited to a handful of roads
• Delivering 20mph on driver’s home streets
• Engaging with the public on why the scheme is being implemented
• Deploying on faster roads for maximum impact

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A successful trial of the CCTV system demonstrated that analytical technology can identify stranded vehicles in live lanes in all conditions. National Highways, however, has determined the video analytics service platform (VASP) is not up to scratch.

AA president, Edmund King, has voiced concern over the decision, expressing that CCTV systems could be “incredibly useful”.

National Highways have refused to share the results of its large-scale trial of the systems, despite the technology being cited in the Government’s smart motorway action plan as another solution. 

Other trials of the VASP have yielded positive results. Reports indicate that the system alerts incidents of interest to operators’ desks, allowing for a quicker response and more precise data.

However, the VASP has one obvious drawback. The CCTV cameras are currently incapable of automatic manoeuvrability and have to be reoriented manually. 

It is likely that this is the main concern from National Highways, who have instead favoured the existing radar-based stopped vehicle detection (SVD) system.

The report added: “The trial did observe external factors that could limit the use of CCTV to detect stopping vehicles, the main one being the reliability of camera feeds.”

National Highways did not explain, though, why CCTV technology is not being progressed. A spokesperson commented: “Our preferred approach is the continued rollout of stopped vehicle detection. It is the most effective solution.”

“In line with our company approach for continuous improvement, we will continue to review and, where possible, improve how we identify stopped vehicles.”

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The 2022 survey, polling 3,102 drivers, revealed that 58% of drivers believe local roads have become worse in the past year, an increase of 2% from last year’s statistics and up from 52% in 2020.

In contrast, a mere 4% think local roads have improved in the past 12 months, down from 6% over the previous two years.

The most common complaint, raised by 98% of respondents, was related to road surface quality and potholes. More than half (55%) of respondents rated the standard of pothole repairs in their area as ‘poor’ or ‘very poor’.

An additional 63% said they’d noticed fading road markings, up from 56% in 2021’s survey. Another 42% of drivers reported poor signage visibility while a further 35% grumbled about roadside litter. 

Nearly half of UK drivers (45%) ranked local road conditions as their top motoring concern, although more people (55%) were worried about rising fuel costs.

Commenting on the survey, Nicholas Lyes, RAC’s head of roads policy said: ‘“Many [drivers] describe the repair work – when it’s carried out – as being substandard, which more than likely means potholes and surface defects will quickly reappear, costing yet more money to fix.

“This seems to be utter madness and an issue that badly needs addressing if drivers’ views are indeed accurate. Unfortunately, we do still have a widespread funding shortfall meaning that many councils can’t afford to maintain and improve roads as they would like to.”

Cllr David Renard, the transport spokesperson for the Local Government Association, attributed the cost of living crisis to the poor condition of UK roads. He made the case that the organisation’s latest estimates show that the average cost of a pothole repair has increased by 25%, with the cost of running street lights nearly doubling.

He said: “Research shows that, even before current levels of inflation, existing levels of funding will lead to a gradual decline in road conditions.

“The Government should meet these increased costs in the upcoming Autumn Statement; otherwise they risk the current pothole repair backlog growing even longer and councils being forced to cut back on essential road repairs.”

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The AA spoke out last week, claiming that England’s local roads network cannot take another round of cuts. This comes after latest reports revealed that a third of the nation’s B and C roads were rated in amber or red condition in 2022.  

The Road Conditions in England statistics, published on the 3rd of November 2022, provides data on the condition of all major road networks in the country. This includes reporting on damaged road surfaces, skidding resistance and highway treatments.  

The percentage of B and C classified roads with a red, or unacceptable, rating was 6%. This figure has remained unchanged for the past six years. A further 28% of these local roads had an amber rating.

Furthermore, the report admits that 15% of unclassified roads that required repairs were not considered for maintenance in 2022. 

Despite the stagnant progress in improvement, the government funding for highway maintenance has been frozen at 2021-2022 levels for the next three financial years and may be cut back further late this month. 

Responding to this decision, Head of roads policy Jack Cousens said: “Roads across the country are in an awful state and, with winter just around the corner, the plague of potholes will only spread.

“Local roads are at great risk of becoming dangerous and need significant invest to make them safe. Smooth roads also encourage people to cycle more, which would help reach our net zero targets.

“Our local roads cannot take another round of cuts. The prime minister and chancellor should avoid slashing local road investment later this month.

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The Transport Focus survey questioned 31,000 visitors of 119 motorway service stations up and down the country. Users rated their experience, scoring toilet cleanliness, value for money, electric vehicle charging, staff friendliness and their mood after leaving the services. 

Overall, motorway services across the board performed exceptionally well, with 93% of visitors reporting they were satisfied with their visit. 

At Rugby services, 100% of visitors were happy with their stop-off at the newest site on the motorway network.

Rugby was also rated as the service station visitors would recommend to friends and family as well as boasting the cleanest toilets – 99% agreed the toilets were neat, clean and well looked after. 

Transport Focus chief executive Anthony Smith said: “Our survey shows motorway service operators deliver good overall customer experience and facilities, but visitors don’t always feel they get value for money.

“Services continue to do a good job of their most important safety function – allowing drivers to rest and relax before getting back on the road.”

The key findings from the survey were as follows: 

• Staff at service stations are friendly and helpful – 9/10 visitors rated staff experience positively
• 88% of visitors were satisfied with the toilets. Extra and Roadchef service facilities had the highest ratings for toilets both at 93%
• Value for money continues to be the critical area for improvement – 37% of visitors didn’t think the food or drink on offer was good value for money
• Stopping at the services has a positive impact on drivers’ mood – almost one in three arrive saying they feel tired, stressed or frustrated, which fell to less than one in 10 after the visit
• HGV drivers were the least satisfied overall at 88%
• Users charging electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles rated the payment options at the services highly (91%) but gave lower ratings for value for money (68%) and for information available online (73%)

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Drivers on London’s ULEZ roads will need to own a vehicle that passes either Euro 6 diesel standards or Euro 4 petrol standards. If a car doesn’t meet these eco-friendly regulations, drivers will be taxed a £12.50 daily fee for entering a ULEZ.  

So far, the expansion has generated £93.6 million of additional revenue through the taxation of non-compliant vehicles. 

An RAC analysis of Transport for London (TfL) figures shows that between November 2021 and June 2022, around 1.9 million journeys were made into the ULEZ every month by vehicles that didn’t fit the correct emissions standards. This resulted in £112.5m worth of revenue from drivers required to pay.

Nicholas Lyes, Head of RAC’s roads policy commented: “The expansion of the Ultra-Low Emission Zone in 2021 meant a far larger geographical area was covered by the mayor’s strict vehicle emissions standards. 

“For many, this meant a very stark choice: either replacing their vehicle with a compliant model or paying the £12.50 daily charges Failing to pay the charge wasn’t an option either as it would result in a hefty penalty charge notice.

“The expansion of the ULEZ has resulted in a much-increased revenue stream for Transport for London, notwithstanding the costs associated with introducing the larger ULEZ. Londoners living outside the current ULEZ will now worry about the prospect of further expansion, mooted to be at the end of August 2023.

Mr Lyes added: “We would encourage the mayor to take a pragmatic approach and redouble his efforts to support lower-income families and businesses with non-compliant vehicles with a targeted scrappage scheme ahead of any expansion plans.”

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The study, conducted by the TRL – The Future of Transport Group – suggests GDL regulations would pose a minimal impact on new drivers while vastly improving their safety. 

GDL seeks to impose limitations on newly qualified drivers, many of whom are young, to encourage steady progress and experience in the critical few months that follow their test.

These limitations, typically target known risk situations, include a ban on driving in the dark and carrying peer-age passengers.

Other countries such as Canada, the USA, Australia and New Zealand have introduced GDL rules on their roads. The UK meanwhile, voted against implementing GDL back in 2020. 

This decision however could be about to change as the Government continues to look at ways to protect younger drivers. Gov.uk numbers show that while 17 to 24-year-olds make up only 7% of drivers, they are involved in 20% of serious and fatal road accidents.

International evidence shows that GDL can reduce collisions and trauma from collisions involving young drivers by 20-40%. Authors of the TRL study concluded that implementing GDL restrictions would not cause an adverse impact on young drivers, reasoning that:

“This is because all stakeholders (new drivers, and their friends and families; employers; and service providers) were found to adapt to restrictions, with evidence showing that exemptions and changes in travel patterns help people to maintain the most important elements of their mobility, while still benefitting from well-evidenced improvements in safety.”

Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said: “Rather than limiting young people’s life chances, GDL is all about ensuring they can seize them safely. Immediately after young people pass their driving tests they are at the point of greatest risk, but the evidence from overseas is that a framework of minimal restrictions and exemptions would enable these new drivers to access a world of opportunity in the safest possible way for themselves and other road users.”

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With September 2022 awash with heavy thunderstorms and inclement downpours, the result was over 27mm of extra rainfall. New research from the State of the UK Climate Report confirms the trend, observing a growth in the frequency and intensity of rainfall across the UK.

Heavy rainfall is problematic for developers, potentially causing myriad issues including damage to the works, collapsing excavations, materials and earthworks becoming saturated or waterlogged, and plants and surfaces being slippery when wet, creating unsafe working conditions. 

Water Management Company ACO has urged developers to install better systems to appropriately conserve and disperse water when storms hit. They suggest having sustainable drainage systems in place to ensure good surface run-off, preventing waterlogging by retaining water as high up on site as possible. 

Examples of sustainable drainage solutions include bio-retention channels, rain gardens, swales and tree pits. Working in different ways, these methods channel excess rainfall to flow from hard surfaces and roads into safe storage tanks. In turn, this allows the water to slowly feed back into the ground and waterways, rather than flooding sewers. 

ACO also advises civil engineers to include trees and green areas in their site designs to ensure natural drainage where possible while also safeguarding local wildlife and helping to combat carbon pollution. 

ACO sustainability lead Adam Cane said: “The UK’s climate is changing rapidly and we’re seeing more regular cycles of extreme weather events. This is creating two challenges. Firstly, sites are starved of water and biodiversity suffers as a result. Secondly, flash floods and downpours mean large amounts of stormwater enter our systems and may bypass treatment, which can then mean harmful pollutants get washed into the surrounding ecological systems.

“This is something that needs to be considered early in the design by the construction industry and there are ways in which highways professionals can help protect our environment. The key to any new site development is to limit our intrusion into nature wherever possible and keep as much of the natural environment in place.” 

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The proposal seeks to accelerate the progress of ongoing schemes such as the Stonehenge road tunnel. This project is currently underway building a new 3.3km long tunnel running underneath the Stonehenge World Heritage Site and is expected to be opened to traffic in 2026. 

Mr Kwarteng’s Growth Plan 2022, which was published on the 23rd of September, provides a long list of national highway projects highlighted for faster completion. 

One of the ways the Chancellor proposes to accelerate the pace of infrastructure growth is to make changes to the Judicial Review system and the Highways Act of 1980. Tweaks to these pieces of legislation may see reduced delays from claims and faster approval of projects. 

Mr Kwarteng’s mini-budget provides an extensive list of infrastructure projects, including 86 for national highways, as well as more for rail and local transport, to be prioritised with construction commencing before the end of 2023. 

Alasdair Reisner, chief executive of the Civil Engineering Contractors Association, said: “Any efforts to accelerate infrastructure delivery should be applauded, as ultimately this will drive much-needed economic growth.

“However, we have seen efforts to speed up delivery by past administrations, so we hope that the new Government will work with industry to ensure the measures announced today are genuinely transformative, and will enable the UK to harness infrastructure investment to deliver a high-growth economy in the months and years ahead.”

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The technology uses infrared radiation to reheat existing surfaces meaning more material can be mixed into the road’s surface to repair any damage. 

The restoration technique pays homage to the history of the Roman city’s thermal waters, which have played a central role in the development and tourism of Bath.  

Not only is the thermal system historically significant, but it will also be highly environmentally conscious. It will reduce waste material by promoting the recycling of damaged road surfaces as well as removing the need for emission-producing power tools. This way, repairs can be made more efficiently with lower noise pollution and far fewer carbon dioxide emissions.

The system and the self-contained vehicle it travels in are also fitted with solar panels, meaning it can recharge in the sun’s light to utilise sustainable energy. 

Operations manager Charlie Cox said: “We have trialled road repair technology for a number of years including in Bath and North East Somerset in 2019 and 2021, as well as in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead.

It’s brilliant to see Bath and North East Somerset (BANES) council adopting thermal road repair technology into its own fleet, helping to reduce our environmental impact.”

Mark Roper, BANES council cabinet assistant added: “We’re always looking for new and innovative ways to deliver our essential works while still moving towards our goal of becoming carbon neutral. We know that embracing and investing in new and innovative methods like this will help us tackle the climate emergency better.

After successful trials using this system, we’ve seen the benefits that it can bring, and we’re excited to see it out and about improving our highways.”

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