Recommendation 16

The Department told us that it has to strike the balance between asking for more information and the increased burden of work for each local authority to provide that information, and that there are limits placed by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. It acknowledged, however, that many local authorities already collect more data than required by the Department, which they use for their own operational purposes.27 In addition, the Department noted that when evaluating one of its funding pots, local authorities had expressed a willingness to provide more data.28 The Department told us that the increase in reporting the proportion of the road network that falls into the five new categories is broadly supported by local authorities, but will be subject to formal approval by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. The Department also confirmed that it is currently reviewing the broader requirements for local authority data collection on highway maintenance.29 24 Qq 6-8; Written evidence submitted by the Department for Transport dated 5 December 2024 ‘Local roads in England – PAS2161 Road Condition Monitoring Data Standard’ 25 Q 20 26 Qq 21, 26, 31 27 Qq 14, 18, 20-21, 23, 26, 31 28 Q 34 29 Written evidence submitted by the Department for Transport dated 05 December ‘Local roads in England – PAS2161 Road Condition Monitoring Data Standard’ 12 2 The Department’s funding to local authorities Complexity and short-term nature of funding arrangements