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Written question asked by Charlotte Cane (Liberal Democrat) on Monday, 16 March 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 18 March 2026. It was answered by Simon Lightwood (Labour) on Tuesday, 24 March 2026 on behalf of the Department for Transport.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate her Department has made of the annual cost of repairing and maintaining soil affected roads.

Answer

The Department is aware of the challenges associated with maintaining peat soil affected roads. Under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980, the statutory responsibility for maintaining the public highway rests with local highway authorities, who are best placed to make decisions based on their local knowledge and circumstances. As such the Department has not undertaken an assessment of the annual cost of maintaining soil affected roads.

To support local highway authorities in the maintenance of their highway networks, the Government has confirmed a record investment of £7.3 billion for local highways maintenance over the next four years. This record investment builds on the investment of £1.6 billion this financial year, a £500 million increase compared to the previous financial year.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
121005
Session
2024-26
Subjects
Costs Roads Repairs and maintenance Soil
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk