Reducing Congestion from Highway Works

The cost of congestion resulting from road and street works in London is estimated to be £750M, of which at least £300M occurs on the Transport London Road Network. The annual cost to the UK wider economy as a result of congestion from street works alone has been estimated at £4.3 Billion. Clearly there would be benefit in employing innovative methods that reduce the impact of road and street works on traffic congestion by:

• Allowing traffic to move over excavations at certain times during the works (e.g. during morning and evening peak periods) rather than maintaining an ‘absolute’ closure for the duration of the works; or
• Shortening the duration of the works.

The aim of this project, funded by the Department for Transport (DfT) and Transport for London (TfL), is to investigate the feasibility of Plating and Bridging, Temporary Backfill, and Faster Cure Permanent Reinstatements to achieve those benefits.

A Steering Group, comprising staff from TRL, DfT, TfL, Local Authorities and Utility Companies, has been formed to direct the work and review the outputs. In addition, Working Groups have been formed to progress the detailed work on each of three main tasks. This website provides information and guidance on the use of plating and bridging; temporary backfill; and faster cure materials. The site includes downloadable guidance notes aimed at using innovative techniques to achieve quick wins in reducing congestion. This site will be updated on a regular basis until project completion at the end of 2012. There is also a facility for you to provide us with any information and feedback.