Blog
National Highways’ Toxic Run-Off
It has been widely reported that our rivers are polluted, with not a single river in England in good overall health. What isn’t so well known is that a major source of this pollution comes from our roads – oil spills, particulate matter, and microplastics from tyre and brake wear. Every time it rains, this toxic brew gets flushed into streams and rivers. National Highways, which manages the strategic road network (SRN), is responsible for 18,083 outfalls (pipes) that go...
Highway robbery – abusing Designated Funds
TAN has discovered that National Highways is syphoning off money from a dedicated fund for environmental and safety improvements (called ‘Designated Funds’1) to use it as sweeteners or greenwashing for...
National Highways not being held to account
There was a flurry of publications just before Parliament broke up in July, three of which directly related to National Highways. These reports are quite revealing about what National Highways has and has not achieved. They also show what aspects of National Highways’ performance are not scrutinised, and raise questions...
National Highways failing nature
When National Highways plans and delivers road schemes, it is meant to avoid harming nature and then minimise any impact, which it is then supposed to compensate for. This is called “mitigation” and is a legal requirement. In addition, new rules about Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) require developers to create...
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Overspending on major projects – deliberate or incompetence?
National Highways has been criticised by watchdogs for frequent increases in the cost of its major road schemes, which can occur both before and after construction starts. Schemes can end up costing taxpayers millions – sometimes billions – more than when they were approved, calling into question the reliability of...
Dartford toll hikes: just the beginning
This week saw the government slap a 40% hike in toll charges for the Dartford crossings, raising the basic cost for a car from £2.50 to £3.50. It suggests that perhaps we’re not so far off the mark when we said tolls would have to triple if the Lower Thames...
Road safety record is a car crash
National Highways routinely claims that safety is its “top priority” but this spin is not borne out by its spending decisions or its poor record of reducing serious casualties on its network. Since coming into existence (as Highways England) in 2015, the company has spent a fraction of its huge...