Highways are a vital part of West Sussex and Conservatives leading the county council are proud of their achievements, notably the Lane Rental Scheme.
Conservative-led West Sussex has been part of the scheme since December 2022, where contractors pay up to £2.5k per day to 'rent' the road space when they are working during peak travel times.
Lane rental has enormous benefits, particularly as a change in guidance has meant the council can use the monies raised for Highways maintenance.
HIGHWAYS FACTS - as opposed to the myths being circulated by the mischievous during the election campaign:
· The West Sussex Highways and Transport budget for 26/27 has a gross expenditure of £84.6m but excluding sales, fees, charges and service specific government grants the net expenditure is £47.1m.
· This budget maintains over 4000km of roads and 3,956km of footways.
· The new Highways maintenance contract allows for up to 45,000 defects to be repaired. This is up from 37,000 previously.
· Additional funding from the Lane Rental reserve is included within the 2026/27 budget which will build on the £10m revenue investment over the previous two years. This is on top of an additional capital investment of £40m over the last four years
· Recent guidance published alongside the amended Lane Rental legislation allows for surplus funds in the Lane Rental reserve to be applied to Highways maintenance.
· Given these recent guidelines, West Sussex County Council will optimise the use of the Lane Rental reserve over time, to contribute a minimum of £2m to the existing £3m additional funding to ensure an annualised continuation of the recent additional investment.
· The new maintenance contract continues to exceed its KPI target for the time taken to make safe and repair safety defects on the highway.
· In addition to safety defects that will be fixed in the year, Highways will address over 24,000 further defects using the Jet Patcher.
· The new drainage term contract has better integrated gully cleansing along with drainage investigation and repair work.
· An additional £1.1m has been invested in the 2026/27 Concessionary Fares budget to support a 7.4% rise in journey numbers following the introduction of better bus services and greater use of concessionary fares due to the cost of living.
· In 2026/27 there is planned capital investment of £56.5m and a total of £308.3m over the five year period 2026/27 to 2030/31.
· The focus of capital investment remains on the annual highways works programme including major A Roads investment, highways depot investment, bus services and street lighting.
So what is the Lane Rental Scheme?
The West Sussex Lane Rental Scheme is a government endorsed initiative, that charges utility companies and highway authorities up to £2,500 per day for disruptive roadworks on key, traffic-sensitive routes during busy times. It aims to reduce congestion, encourage efficient working, and fund innovative repair projects. It has been live since December 2022.
- Operational Focus: Charges apply on the busiest roads during peak hours to minimize traffic disruption.
- Financial Penalty & Incentive: The scheme encourages companies to work outside peak times, at weekends, or complete work faster to avoid daily fees.
- Reinvestment: Revenue raised is reinvested in local highways projects and to test new technology, such as AI for repairs.
- Coverage: It covers over 900 key roads across West Sussex.
- Exceptions: Charges may be waived for specific situations, such as immediate, emergency repairs within the first 48 hours.
- Ultimately: The scheme is designed to change behaviour to ensure that necessary road works cause less disruption to local communities.
