Hertfordshire marks third year of roadworks permit scheme

A permit scheme that gives Hertfordshire County Council more control over how and when roadworks take place on roads across the county, has recently marked its three year anniversary.

The scheme, approved by the Department for Transport, was introduced in November 2012 and requires anybody carrying out roadworks in Hertfordshire to seek prior agreement and have a permit in place before starting work. It has enabled the county council to set conditions on the timing and coordinate the amount of road space left available to road users, improving traffic flow and minimising disruption.

In the three years, a total of 225,751 permits have been applied for and the East of England Permit Scheme has enabled HCC to manage its network with far greater control. The conditions of the scheme have contributed greatly in minimising the disruption caused by roadworks to all of Hertfordshire’s road users.

Terry Douris, cabinet member for highways, said: “The permit scheme has been a great success. We were frustrated in the past by a lack of legal powers to coordinate roadworks. The roads in Hertfordshire are very busy and keeping the traffic moving is extremley important.

“This scheme has allowed us much greater ability to coordinate all work on our roads and when companies responsible for roadworks have broken the terms of their permit or not obtained one at all we have taken tough action, issuing fines and in certain cases, taking them to court.”