Content archived on 20 April 2024
The consultation also sets out ORR's strategic objective on securing improved performance and value for money from the strategic road network, and explains how ORR will hold Highways England to account. ORR is seeking comments from all interested parties by 19 June 2015.
Last year the UK government announced a £15bn roads investment plan for England's strategic roads network between 2015-16 and 2020-21. Through the Infrastructure Act 2015, reforms have also been made to the structure of the roads sector to support this significant investment programme.
From 1 April 2015, the Highways Agency will be replaced by a government-owned company, Highways England, with specific performance requirements and investments to deliver over the five year funding period. ORR will take on responsibility for the independent monitoring of Highways England's management of the strategic road network to ensure it meets its performance and efficiency targets.
The Government has set Highways England specific performance targets including making the network safer; minimising disruption from road works and incidents; delivering better environmental outcomes; and increasing the capacity of the network. ORR will work to ensure that Highways England delivers its plan to improve the performance and efficiency of the strategic road network to benefit road users and the wider public. ORR will monitor Highways England's progress and publish annual assessments of its operational and financial performance.
ORR will focus on increasing transparency, making more information available on Highways England's performance, and providing robust advice to the Secretary of State on future performance requirements.
ORR Highways Director Peter Antolik said:
We are looking forward to working with stakeholders as we develop our new highways monitoring function. Our focus is on putting in place a highly effective monitoring regime to track Highways England's performance against its Roads Investment Strategy and the delivery of clear benefits for all road users.
This is an exciting time for ORR as the new role builds on our skills and expertise as the independent economic and safety regulator for the railways. It also enables greater synergies between the two sectors as we share our knowledge and experience in vital areas such as asset management, engineering and performance assessment.
Notes to editors
- The Office of Rail and Road is the independent economic and safety rail regulator as well as the independent strategic roads monitor.
- ORR's monitoring role for strategic roads primarily focuses on;
- monitoring how well Highways England is delivering on its targets;
- considering enforcement action to drive improvements if there are delivery problems; and
- advising the Secretary of State on the development of the next Road Investment Strategy and other relevant issues.
- The consultation on ORR's highways monitor role can be found on our website at https://orr.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0015/17610/monitoring-highways-england-first-consultation.pdf. The consultation is open for 12 weeks until 19 June 2015.
- ORR has been preparing for this additional responsibility over the past 18 months, working closely with the Department for Transport, Highways Agency/England, Transport Focus and others stakeholders to identify and evaluate the different approaches it could take to carry out the new role. The extensive feedback is reflected in the proposed approach to monitoring Highways England, now open for wider consultation.
- ORR has strengthened its Board to complement these new responsibilities with the appointment of Stephen Glaister as Non-Executive Director. Mr Glaister is currently Emeritus Professor of Transport and Infrastructure at the Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Imperial College London, and is recently retired as director of the RAC Foundation. For more on this appointment see https://orr.gov.uk/news-and-media/email-alerts/2015/orr-strengthens-board-with-new-appointment.
- The Highways England Strategic Business Plan was published last December setting out their strategic approach to delivering the government's Road Investment Strategy.
- In December 2014, Government published its vision for the strategic road network https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/road-investment-strategy-strategic-vision and the Performance Specification – the objectives that Highways England must deliver in Road Period 1 (RP1) from 01 April 2015 to 31 March 2020.The Office of Rail and Road is the operating name of the Office of Rail Regulation. The 'Office of Rail Regulation' will continue to be used in all documents, decisions and matters having legal effects or consequences until a formal name change is confirmed by legislation in October 2015.