Overview

The Road Traffic (Congestion Reduction) Bill aims to reduce traffic congestion in England and Wales by placing a legal duty on local traffic authorities and police forces to minimize delays caused by road incidents. This includes improving incident management and developing better contingency plans for managing traffic flow around obstructions.

Description

This bill amends existing legislation (the Traffic Management Act 2004 and the Police Act 1996). Key changes include:

• Local Traffic Authorities: A stronger emphasis on minimizing congestion becomes a core part of their duties. They must establish contingency plans for directing traffic around road closures and publish annual reports on prolonged road closures, detailing their causes and the actions taken.
• Police Authorities: Police forces must incorporate into their local policing plans a requirement to minimize congestion resulting from road incidents. Road closures should only be a last resort, and for the shortest necessary time.

Government Spending

The bill does not directly specify any new government spending. The costs associated with implementing the new duties would likely fall on existing budgets of local traffic authorities and police forces. No specific figures are provided in the bill text.

Groups Affected

• Local Traffic Authorities: Increased responsibilities for managing traffic flow and reporting on road closures.
• Police Forces: Changes to their operational procedures regarding managing road incidents to minimize congestion.
• Road Users: Potentially benefits from reduced congestion and quicker incident clearance times.

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