Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits setting national standards for local authorities conducting road improvement projects.

The Design Manual for Roads and Bridges contains information on the design, construction, and maintenance of highways for construction professionals. These documents apply to trunk road and motorway works.

For all other roads, the decisions on the choice of standards and their incorporation into designs is up to the relevant local highway authority. As local road networks have evolved over time, the Department instead encourages local authorities to adopt good practice in local highway maintenance through channels such as the Well Managed Highway Infrastructure Code of Practice produced by the UK Roads Leadership Group and to adopt the principles of the Manual for Streets, which provides advice on designing streets that create a sense of place and deliver for local people.