Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 15 March 2016 to Question 30069, which local authorities have a (a) fully resolved partnership agreement and (b) partnership agreement received from Highways England not yet fully resolved; and which local authorities have not yet received an agreement proposal.

Highways England is an active member of the National and Regional Traffic Manager Forums. In 2012, Highways Agency (as was), through the governance of the Forum, devised partnership agreements for cooperation and collaboration between Highways Agency and 120 local highway authorities and provide a framework to meet their statutory obligations with regard to the Traffic Management Act 2004. Highways England is now in the process of revising these agreements.

So far, there are two fully revised agreements with Kent County Council and Warwickshire County Council. Highways England are liaising with another 87 local highway authorities, having adding a further 22 Local Authorities since the last Parliamentary Questions on this issue. The vast majority of these authorities accept the principles of the agreement, which include protocols for agreeing and using diversion routes when a section of the network has to be closed, but have not yet formally agreed these. In some cases specific local issues need to be resolved and Highways England is engaged with those authorities to resolve them. This leaves 31 authorities requiring an updated agreement.

It should be noted that whether a partnership agreement is endorsed or otherwise, Highways England and Local Authorities work cooperatively in an emergency applying the fundamental principles contained within the agreements to uphold the safety and free-flow of their respective networks and aim to minimise disruption to drivers and communities.