Road chaos companies face £50,000 fines

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Relief is in sight for Renfrewshire motorists caught in hold ups and traffic jams with news that utility firms could soon face £50,000 fines for road works which cause chaos.

Currently there are 130 different power, water, gas and telecoms companies which have the right to dig up the roads in Renfrewshire without having to get permission from the council. The council has no control over how long these road works last or when they are done.

New legislation has seen the creation of a Road Works Commissioner. On 1 April 2008, the commissioner receives powers under the Transport (Scotland) Act 2005 to levy huge fines against firms which consistently flout their duty to cooperate with councils and coordinate the work they are doing with other utility companies.

A key part of the new legislation is the new Scottish Road Works Register. All roadworks and obstructions on the roads lasting more than 1 hour (including scaffolding and skips) will now be recorded with the information being posted on the Scottish Road Works Register website. Firms which don't keep their information up-to-date face fixed penalty notices from Renfrewshire Council.

Councillor Marie McGurk, convener of Renfrewshire Council's environment and infrastructure policy board, said: "Finally we have an Act with real teeth behind it. The new powers should address a range of issues that we've struggled with since the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991 allowed utility companies to carry out their own road repairs."

"All too often when drivers are caught in roadworks they blame the council. But most roadworks are done by utility companies and, up until now, we'd had very little control over what they did.

"The utility companies are responsible for planning and carrying out work to their equipment and repairing the road after they've finished it. In 2006/07 power, water, gas and telecoms companies dug up Renfrewshire roads over 3,000 times. To give some idea of the scale of the problems we face, we had to issue 406 safety notices on these repairs. Nationally, one in four of the road repairs done by utility companies also fail quality tests."

"Residents and local businesses frequently complain that roads are closed for long periods with no work apparently being done. Unfortunately, the utility companies are driven by generating profits sometimes at the expense of considering the travelling public. The new fixed penalty system should go some way to changing this attitude!"

"The Act should also lead to better co-ordination between utility companies and end the practise where one firm digs up the road just after it has been resurfaced by another. The public will also be able to find out exactly where and when roadworks are being done and who is responsible."

The Scottish Road Works Register will also show all obstructions including skips, scaffolding, street traders and certain moving hold ups which could cause long delays, for example, parades. Under the Act, permits are now needed for these activities and Renfrewshire Council will be charging for these from 1 April 2008 to cover its costs.

Press release: Friday 25 January 2008