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A50 (Staffordshire)

The Petition of Draycott in the Moors Parish Council and the community of Draycott in the Moors, with the communities and Parish Councils of Checkley, Forsbrook, Fulford and Leigh, Declares that the constant ever increasing noise from the 33,000 plus vehicles using the A50 concrete road daily has become intolerable. Residents cannot have their windows open at night even in mid-summer. They are also unable to sit in their gardens in peace as the noise can drown conversations. These and other side effects put a great strain on the nervous system. The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to change the policy of waiting until this surface needs repair, estimated to be in thirty years time, and resurface this road with a quieter surface immediately. And the Petitioners remain, etc. —[Presented by Mr. William Cash , Official Report, 21 May 2008; Vol. 476, c. 370.] [P000200] Observations from the Secretary of State for Transport : Protecting and enhancing the environment is an increasingly important role for the Highways Agency, and this includes mitigating the impact of traffic noise wherever practicable. Therefore, the Highways Agency will continue to install lower noise surfacing materials on all new roads and when it carries out major maintenance on existing roads. This policy has so far enabled the Agency to install low noise surfacing on 35 per cent. of its network, and aims to resurface an additional 7.5 per cent. of the network up to 2010-11. Where noise is a particular problem for local communities, the Agency also investigates the feasibility of noise mitigation measures to provide practical and cost-effective solutions. Sixty sites have benefitted from these measures in the last nine years, with a further seven sites expected to be treated by 2010-11. The Highways Agency is also working closely with DEFRA to implement the requirements of the EU Environmental Noise Directive, as transposed into UK legislation by the Environmental Noise Regulations (2006). This has already resulted in noise maps being produced for the entire strategic road network in England, and a road noise action plan is to be put in place later in this financial year. The action plan is expected to identify practical cost-effective and sustainable solutions to reduce road noise, and is due to be finalised in early 2009. The Highways Agency is also developing a forward strategy for noise mitigation, which will include implementation of a new system for identifying and prioritising problem sites. 18 Jun 2008 : Column 14P The Government has a duty to deliver value for money within the budgets that are available. The Highways Agency's road maintenance budget is optimised to ensure that the network is kept in a safe and serviceable condition. Bringing forward the resurfacing of concrete roads ahead of need to reduce noise would mean that essential maintenance work would have to be put back. This would have a detrimental impact on the condition of the strategic road network with subsequent cost implication on maintenance in the longer term. It would also be inconsistent with our wider aims to operate a sustainable transport system, by optimising the use of raw materials and energy required for road construction and maintenance. Therefore, while I am very sympathetic to the concerns of your constituents I cannot at this time agree to resurfacing the A50 ahead of maintenance need, which is not anticipated until at least 2020.