Don’t sacrifice pedestrian space for roadworks

Pedestrian and disability campaign groups as well as experts across the highways sector have responded to news that the Secretary of State plans to make pavements the default location for new utility infrastructure, to cut down on roadworks and potholes.

Chris Grayling is reported saying that a change is needed because potholes are far more likely to appear on sections of roads that had been recently dug up, and that this would cause 'much less long-term damage' as pavements are not exposed to the same heavy duty usage. However, he admitted that work to existing utility infrastructure would still have to take place on the road.

Highways magazine has canvassed views from experts across the industry as well as from safety groups.

Editor, Dominic Browne, said: “The highways sector is making great innovations, such as mapping the road network better than ever, modelling its deterioration using new techniques and finding more efficient ways to carry out repairs. Unfortunately we still have a long way to go and very little funding to make the journey with.”

A senior spokesperson from the Department for Transport told Highways; “The country needs to understand the roads repair backlog and target exactly what needs to be prioritised for works.”

Stephen Joseph, chief executive of the Campaign for Better Transport, told The Times, which ran the report: “Pavements are already in a terrible state, partly because we already have lots of utilities under there. The result is that the NHS spends an awful lot of money treating people who've had trips, slips and falls on uneven and badly maintained pavements.

“Unless Chris Grayling is prepared to make much more money available for pavements, he will simply make an already big problem a whole lot worse. You can't just export the problem from roads to pavements without expecting major consequences.”

The National Federation of the Blind of the UK said: ‘If Chris Grayling thinks he is going to disrupt access for blind and disabled people simply to grab a quick headline rather than address underlying issues around efficiency, proper road maintenance and collaboration within the roads sector, he is going to have one hell of an fight on his hands. Pavements are for people, end of discussion.’

David Davies, Executive Director of PACTS, the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety said: “The potholes issue has a Groundhog Day feel about it. But this year dissatisfaction with the state of the roads seems greater than ever, among councils across the country and road user groups from cyclists to HGV drivers. The one group frequently overlooked is pedestrians. They are not represented by a powerful lobby group. Pedestrian falls on the pavement (footway), are not counted in government road casualty statistics, no matter how serious. Falls for elderly people can be deadly due to the complications that may follow.

The proposal to relocate services from the road to the pavement needs to be closely scrutinised for the implications for pedestrian safety. Cycle-ways, too, are likely to be affected. It is vital that savings in road maintenance do not become costs to the NHS and Social Care.”

Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said: “As motorists we’d all like to see an end to the roadworks needed to fix the pipes and cables buried beneath them, but the fact is we’re hemmed in by history. Utility networks have been run under our roads for well over a century.

“Perhaps new technologies like pipe-jacking will help, likewise installing access points away from the main carriageway.

“Looking ahead, surely the design of new services should be minimising disruption to motorists and pedestrians alike, particularly where new roadway is being built.”

Jerry McConkey, CEO of JAG(UK) which represents the interests of every Highway and Road Authority in the United Kingdom, commented: “What the Secretary of State says is laudable but there are numerous practicalities that make it difficult to achieve. In fact, there are many utilities already with apparatus in the footway, and many of those currently in the road are simply too big to move into what is already a cluttered environment.”

Technology and innovation is driving significant change which will help government bodies who maintain the UK’s road network – all of which can be seen through live demonstrations at Traffex Seeing is Believing, 27-28 June 2018 http://www.sib.uk.net/