NAO report is “a sad reflection on the state of disrepair of England’s roads,” says Logistics UK

Responding to the National Audit Office report: “The condition and maintenance of local roads in England”, Michelle Gardner, Deputy Director Policy at business group Logistics UK, says:

“The report makes sober reading and is a sad reflection on the state of disrepair of England’s roads. Potholes cost the UK’s economy over £14.4 billion¹ a year and there is now an opportunity for the new government to implement the report’s recommendations and repair the infrastructure relied on by businesses and the wider population every day.

“The NAO recommends that the DfT works with HM Treasury to set out how it will provide longer-term funding certainty to local authorities, and this, together with the current lack of accurate data on the condition of local roads, is something we are urging the new government to address as soon as possible. Long term funding will enable local authorities to implement preventative road maintenance which, as the NAO recognises, delivers better value for money for taxpayers, is more cost effective than reactive, short-term maintenance activity and will keep deliveries moving to support the UK’s economy.”

Logistics UK is one of the UK’s leading business groups, representing logistics businesses which are vital to keeping the UK trading, and more than seven million people directly employed in the making, selling and moving of goods. With decarbonisation, Brexit, new technology and other disruptive forces driving change in the way goods move across borders and through the supply chain, logistics has never been more important to UK plc. Logistics UK supports, shapes and stands up for safe and efficient logistics, and is the only business group which represents the whole industry, with members from the road, rail, sea and air industries, as well as the buyers of freight services such as retailers and manufacturers whose businesses depend on the efficient movement of goods. For more information about the organisation and its work, please get in touch – here.

Source: ¹CEBR – April 2024