Purpose

To pilot the following measures to immediately
help reduce the disruption caused by road works and street works on
our highway network and inform the development of a new Traffic and
Network Management Plan scheduled for approval by Cabinet early in
2026, by:

1. Challenging the duration of all immediate permits received on
the A&B road network countywide to 2 working days and only
granting extensions on an evidence-based, needs-must basis.
2. Consistently imposing overrun penalties and warnings for these
immediate permits where promoters do not cooperate with the Highway
Authority and works take longer than agreed.
3. Refusing any new applications for work on the A&B road
network in the 8 urban hubs countywide (Burton upon Trent,
Stafford, Tamworth, Lichfield, Cannock/Burntwood, Rugeley,
Newcastle under Lyme, Leek) that have active traffic management
and/or a duration of longer than 10 working days for the next 3
months that are likely to cause additional network
disruption.
4. Implementing additional restrictions on what activities are
permitted on A&B roads in the 8 urban hubs countywide to ensure
works are planned sequentially to keep disruption to a minimum,
starting with an initial pilot in Burton upon Trent and Stafford
town centres.
5. Exploring whether blanket permission can be given by the
District & Borough Councils to allow street works and roads
works activities to work extended hours between 7am-11pm to
expedite the delivery of work on the highway.
6. Encouraging undertakers to remove traffic management to restore
roads to full public use when sites are not actively being worked
at.
7. Seek the support of Staffordshire MP’s and lobby central
government to rebalance legislation that controls street works in
favour of councils and road users.