As part of the roll-out, the Government has pledged to spend an additional £100 million to facilitate autonomous vehicles, including £34 million towards new research and a further £20 million spent on commercial services. 

Alongside this, ministers have committed to bringing forward new laws to support the introduction of self-driving cars by 2025. This new legislation would implicate manufacturers as responsible for a vehicle’s actions, meaning human drivers would not be liable for any incidents related to driving. 

Users won’t need to hold a driving licence as the vehicle will undertake the entire journey without needing human input. The technology works by using a combination of lasers, cameras and radar to recognise objects, like other cars and pedestrians, to plot a course and navigate the car.

There are a few different levels of autonomous control. Some vehicles have driverless features which can be turned on or off by the driver, but other cars won’t need any human interaction at all.

Vehicles capable of driving themselves on motorways could be available to purchase within the next year, though users will need a valid driving licence to drive one.

The Government will also seek to determine regulatory guidelines for the governance of self-driving vehicles. The safety ambition for self-driving cars is to be as competent and careful as a safe human driver. 

This ambition would inform minimum benchmarks that vehicles need to meet before being allowed on our roads. Likewise, organisations such as manufacturers could face sanctions if these standards are not met.

Transport secretary Grant Shapps said: “We want the UK to be at the forefront of developing and using this fantastic technology, and that is why we are investing millions in vital research into the safety and setting the legislation to ensure we gain the full benefits that this technology promises.”

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In the last 40 years alone, one in seven of the UK’s native wildlife species have either become extinct or endangered. 

Roads, railways and traffic all have a severe impact on the levels of wild biodiversity in the UK. Between 2010-2020, transport infrastructure has caused loss of habitat, pollution, fragmentation and mortality.  

Natural England has also found that 40% of our native habitats and 30% of our rarest species are still declining. The number of Hedgehogs alone has halved in the UK since 2000, with experts estimating their numbers have dropped from 30 million to one million over the last 70 years. 

To protect against additional damage to our ecosystems, there are a number of measures that the industry can take to promote biodiversity and safeguard habitats. These include:

• Using sustainable materials: Road surfaces should be made with materials that support the welfare of local species. For instance, residues on regular concrete can be fatal to amphibians. If building near these habitats, polymer concrete material should be used to prevent fatalities. 

• Linking habitats broken by infrastructure: When a road separates two sections of an ecosystem, it’s important to build a safe link using guide walls and crossing tunnels. These measures allow native animals to cross the road safely. 

• Road kerbs and gullies: A wildlife kerb with a recess can help protect animals from road accidents.

• Creating barriers: Erecting temporary fencing around construction areas can help prevent animals from wandering into the site and harming themselves. 

• Compensation: Growing the remaining habitats into suitable climates for biodiversity if other mitigation measures cannot be used.

It is crucial for the transport industry to minimise its negative impact on wildlife and protect endangered habitats. By including wildlife protection measures in our designs, the impact on native species can be reduced. 

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2020 saw 10 local bridges collapsing completely, and in 2021 this number increased to 17. Of these 17 full collapses, 12 were in Dorset and 5 were in Denbighshire.

The number of substandard bridges also rose again in 2021 to reach 3,211, according to structural surveys. 

It is estimated that the total cost to bring all 3,211 bridges back to acceptable standards would be as high as £1.16 billion. 

The RAC, in collaboration with the National Bridges Group ADEPT, have surveyed over 196 local councils to identify the areas with the highest number of structural damage. The top 5 areas were:

Devon has the highest number of damaged structures in the country with 229 of its bridges below national standards. 

Steve Gooding, director of the RAC, said: “Whilst the increase in substandard bridges year-on-year is not huge, the picture over the last five years looks more like flatlining than sustained improvement, and with the threat of more severe weather events linked to climate change that must be a worry for the overall resilience of our highway network.” 

Council engineering experts warn that there will be a shortage of qualified staff to carry out inspections and bridge repairs.

Kevin Dentith, chair of the ADEPT group, said: “The incidence of bridge collapses that lead to personal injury and traffic disruption is thankfully low but unless more engineers and technicians are encouraged to join the industry and highway authorities receive appropriate funding from the Department for Transport we are at risk of seeing a higher number of bridge collapses than those identified in this year’s RAC Foundation survey.”

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Most concrete roads are found in the North East, Yorkshire, East Anglia and the South East; the project will focus on resurfacing stretches of the A11, A14, A12, A120 and M11, upgrading approximately 200 miles (2%) of the National Road Network. 

Concrete, despite being the second most-used substance in the world, runs into problems on the roads. Made by mixing aggregate (crushed rock and sand), along with cement and water, concrete forms a stiff but strong solid.

This rigidity, however, means road surfaces are prone to cracks, especially if the underlying foundations are not perfectly smooth.

Asphalt is also aggregate-based but uses bitumen, a sticky material derived from crude oil, as a binder. The mixture is heated and pressed into the road’s surface with a steamroller. 

Once cooled, asphalt surfaces are highly durable, providing also good flexibility to accommodate imperfections in the surface beneath – a feature that gives it the edge over concrete. 

National Highways Martin Fellows welcomes a refresh: “‘The A11 is a vital route used by 45,000 drivers every day for work journeys and home deliveries, visits to friends and family, and the movement of goods and services. However, the road surface of this stretch is more than 25 years old and despite serving us well, is coming to the end of its life and needs reconstruction.”

Stay up to speed with the latest in road safety news by checking out the Anglo Liners blog every week. Alternatively, click here for a free quote.