Road User Voice – June 2016 – What does the logistics industry need from Highways England?

14 June 2016

More information and engagement on roadworks are among the issues that matter most to the logistics industry.

In May we took our work to Europe’s largest road transport conference. The Microlise Transport Conference, held in Coventry, attracted more than 1000 attendees.

Transport Focus’s road user director, Guy Dangerfield, led a session called ‘What does the logistics industry need from Highways England?’

He talked about three key requirements that shine through:

• Highways England needs to talk more to individual companies, understand their needs from the road network and engage early to discuss how roadworks can be carried out with the least impact.
• Predictability of journey time is commercially important, as customers become ever more demanding about delivery slots.
• Information about scheduled roadworks needs to be improved. Specifically, more notice of closures/diversions needs to be provided. The published dates and times must be delivered.

Driver needs seem to be slightly different from their employers, but it is clear that both agree on the need for better roadside facilities. Lorry drivers, because it impacts on them personally; companies because inadequate provision is seen as part of the industry’s recruitment and retention challenge. We have just finished research in this area and will publish it this summer.

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