Consultation on Holding Highways England to account

Consultation status
Conclusions published

Consultation outcome

In January 2020 we published a consultation on an updated monitoring framework and enforcement policy for Highways England, titled Holding Highways England to account. This new policy replaces our existing monitoring framework and enforcement policy for Highways England and comes into effect for the start of road period 2, from 1 April 2020.

We received 17 responses to the consultation from a range of stakeholders. We are grateful to all those who responded. The responses are available below.

Following careful review of stakeholder responses, we have made some amendments to the policy, including:

  • clarifying the wording in our policy on fines, as well as the process for notifying Highways England of our intent to take statutory enforcement action, should we decide to do so;
  • expanding the list of considerations for determining whether to impose a fine, and when calculating the amount;
  • added new text to our policy that recognises that we may need to draw on the insight of stakeholders, including local and regional bodies, when gathering information.

The changes are discussed in more detail in the decision letter below, which also sets out how we have considered stakeholder feedback. The final Holding Highways England to account policy and impact assessments are also available below.

This marks the conclusion of a piece of work which we had always intended to complete ahead of the second road period, though many of us are of course working in very different circumstances at present. We have been engaging closely with Highways England in recent days and weeks, and will be continuing to do so in the weeks ahead, taking a pragmatic approach to our work as Monitor in the present circumstances.

Decision letter

Consultation conclusion: ORR’s "Holding Highways England to account" policy
30 March 2020

Policy document

Holding Highways England to account
30 March 2020

Consultation responses

Responses to consultation on ORR’s "Holding Highways England to account" policy
30 March 2020

Further information

Impact assessments on ORR’s "Holding Highways England to account" policy
30 March 2020

January 2020 consultation

Start date: 6 January 2020
End date: 14 February 2020

This was the Office of Rail and Road's consultation on our updated monitoring framework and enforcement policy for Highways England, titled "Holding Highways England to account".

We last consulted on our monitoring framework and enforcement policy in 2015, when we first took on our role as Highways Monitor. We took the opportunity to review and update both documents, drawing upon our experience of monitoring Highways England during the first road investment strategy (RIS1), and in preparation for the second road investment strategy, which is expected to start in April 2020.

The changes we proposed, along with the questions on which we sought stakeholders' input, are set out in our consultation cover letter below, along with our draft Holding Highways England to account policy.

Consultation documents