Highways Magazine – Freight and coach firms dissatisfied with SRN

Fewer than half of logistics and coach businesses are satisfied with England’s strategic road network, according to the latest survey from watchdog Transport Focus.

The Logistics and Coach Survey asks freight and coach companies how well roads on National Highways’ network meet their business needs. The poll focuses on surface quality, information, accident response, the quality of rest facilities and the company’s overall management of the network. It is expected to become an official indicator of National Highways’ performance shortly. Over the four years of this survey, overall satisfaction has declined from 55% in 2020-21 to 44% in 2023-24.

Satisfaction with clearing up after accidents and with rest stop facilities were rated lowest. For day-to-day management of the SRN, safety scored highest with 60% rating it as good. Transport Focus chief executive Alex Robertson said: ‘Lorries and coaches are vital parts of our national infrastructure that are too easily taken for granted.

Clearing incidents more quickly, better live information and carrying out road works in smaller bursts are all things they say would make a big difference. ‘We’ll be working closely with the roads sector to help drive improvements and ensure this issue gets the attention it deserves.’ The watchdog said lorry driver rest stops are of particular concern, with just 17% rating the quality of facilities as good and 23% rating the number of stopping places as good.

Value for money of rest stops received the lowest rating, with fewer than one in 10 saying this was good. Businesses said they would like to see the following improvements:

• a reduction in the length of road works, with repairs being carried out in smaller bursts
• more live information made readily available to them
• better rest stop facilities
• for National Highways to clear incidents more quickly.

A National Highways spokesperson said: ‘The logistics and coach sectors are vital to our economy and rely on our motorways and A roads. We are committed to making changes to improve their experience and boost business.

‘Drivers need a safe place to stop to rest on their journeys.

That’s why we have invested GBP13m to help transform lorry parking facilities across England to make them safer and cleaner, we are clearing roads within an hour after incidents and providing up-to-date information to drivers.’

As Highways reported last week[1], out of GBP13m for operators to improve lorry parks due to be spent by next March, National Highways has approved just GBP3m since last December.

References

1. ^ reported last week (www.highwaysmagazine.co.uk)