Councils are treating drivers like wallets on wheels, says AA

DRIVERS are being viewed as “wallets on wheels”, as two thirds of English councils cut their highways budgets despite increases in parking revenue, a study has warned.

Some 62 per cent of local authorities have reduced their expenditure on services such as road maintenance, street lights and school crossing patrols since 2016-17, according to the AA.

But the motoring organisation also found that more than 200 of the 363 councils examined are seeking to increase their parking income by raising fees for on and off street parking and residential permit schemes.

Edmund King, AA president, said: “It is clear that local authority budgets are being squeezed and highways budgets are almost the first in line to be cut.

“Drivers will be frustrated that in many councils the additional income from increased parking charges won’t be reinvested in improving the state of local roads. Far too often drivers are viewed by every level of government as wallets on wheels. We think it is time to redress the balance and drivers get the investment needed to bring our roads back up to scratch.”

AA research found that more than half (53 per cent) of councils have cut their spending on roads maintenance, with the average decrease worth £900,000.

The Greater London Authority made the largest reduction at £59.5million, while North Yorkshire has made the largest cut outside the capital at £6.2million. Hampshire county council has the largest total highways and transport budget reduction, at £9million, and Surrey and Norfolk both plan to cut more than £5million from their respective roads maintenance budgets.

However, Manchester has increased its planned spending on roads maintenance by £4.9million.

A third (33 per cent) of local authorities have lowered their spending on the installation and running of street lights by an average of £300,000, which could lead to many lights being dimmed or switched off. Meanwhile, one in four (24 per cent) councils has reduced budgets – typically by £200,000 – for road safety education programmes and school crossing patrols.

Lancashire has reduced its street lighting budget by almost £2.5million, and Staffordshire plans to cut £1.5million for school crossing patrols and road safety education programmes.

Mr King said: “Councils which have cut school crossing patrols may not have thought about the consequences. Parents may decide that it is safer to drive their children to school rather than walk, which would increase traffic on the roads. Dimming and switching off street lights is a subtle change which local authorities have chosen to take, but the consequences can be fatal.”

Last year the AA wrote to the Transport select committee calling for a public inquiry into council “blackouts”.

It said that since 2009 there had been 11 road deaths where street lights had been switched off.