If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.

Baddington bridge has been under a 7.5 tonne weight restriction since September 2025, with an hour-long diversion, leading to significant additional costs for local businesses and farms. Without a workable alternative, some drivers are ignoring the restriction, causing damage and disruption to country roads and nearby bridges. Will the Minister work with me and urgently review Cheshire East council’s application to the structures fund, so that we can reopen the bridge as soon as possible?

In February this year, the Albert bridge in my constituency was closed. This, coupled with changes to Battersea Bridge Road and the surrounding roads implemented by Transport for London, is causing significant delays, disruption and congestion. Despite my painstaking attempts to engage with TfL over the past five months, it is proving quite difficult. TfL is not engaging with the lived experience of my constituents and myself, so will the Secretary of State engage with TfL on my behalf, to ensure that it engages and works with the constituency MP?

Local highway authorities have a duty under Section 41 of the Highways Act 1980 to maintain the highways network in their area. My Department does not collect data on the reason for every weight restriction or closure applied to a bridge by a local highway authority.

The repair and maintenance of bridges on the local highway network is the responsibility of the relevant local highway authority. The Department is providing local highway authorities with a record £7.3 billion over the next four years to support the maintenance of the local highway network. We have also launched the Structures Fund to support authorities with the cost of repairing local transport structures. Local highway authorities have until 3 August to put forward schemes to be considered for investment.

The Department does not hold data on the number of bridges subject to weight restrictions.

The Government last year announced a £1 billion package of investment for key local highway enhancement projects and the new Structures Fund for repairing run-down bridges and other local highway structures.

This is in addition to the Department’s record investment of £7.3 billion over the next four years to maintain and improve the quality of local roads and highway networks, including local highway bridges and structures.

Responsibility for monitoring and inspecting the condition of local highway bridges sits with local highway authorities. Guidance recommends that they determine how often they inspect their local highways bridges by considering appropriate criteria, for example through a formal risk assessment, and that detailed inspection records should be kept.

We understand that many local authorities choose to follow guidance for National Highways bridges which sets out that general inspections should be undertaken every two years and principal inspections every six years.

The Minister has seen at first hand the disruption and misery caused by the closure of the Broadmead Road bridge for safety reasons. He will also be aware from his visit that the cost of repairs dwarfs what the London borough of Redbridge is able to afford. What support can the Department for Transport provide to make sure that the bridge is reopened, while minimising disruption to the Central line during the repair works, so that we can get Redbridge moving again?

Local highway authorities are not required to utilise the Structures Fund for bridge infrastructure schemes. The Fund is only for those structures where repair or replacement is unaffordable from the local highway authority’s existing budgets and which require repair or replacement now or are likely to before 31 March 2030.

Current traffic management proposals for the M6 Lune Gorge project are being designed to keep traffic on the M6 motorway for the majority of the project. A contraflow system is planned on the M6 to provide a safe working area for construction, while maintaining sufficient lane capacity to avoid significant disruption to drivers.

There will need to be a limited number of full closures of the M6 overnight and at weekends. During these closures, traffic will be diverted onto the local road network using the A6, A591 and A590. This diversion route has been agreed with the relevant local highway authorities as the most suitable option.

National Highways’ current proposals for traffic management arrangements at Junction 38 would keep the junction partially open with traffic diverted via the M6 to the next junction and then back. National Highways is still considering options proposed by stakeholders, including temporary slip roads at junction 38 and other traffic mitigations.

National Highways does not intend to use the A685 as a diversion route. The decision to defer Lawtland House Bridge works, which the A685 runs over, was made to provide additional connectivity to the local community during the Lune Gorge project.

National Highways’ current traffic management proposals would keep Junction 38 of M6 partially open, apart from a limited number of full weekend and overnight closures. For the majority of the works, slip road closures would be phased, with traffic diverted via the M6 to the next junction and then back. While disruptive, they would be required to carry out the bridge replacement works safely. National Highways is still considering options proposed by stakeholders, including temporary slip roads at junction 38, and other traffic mitigations.

Traffic impacts on diversion routes are being assessed through live surveys with Westmorland and Furness Unitary Authority.

National Highways has undertaken over 60 engagement sessions since 2023 to understand the impact on the local community and businesses. As the project progresses towards construction in Spring 2027, the construction methodology and traffic management plans will be finalised. This work will determine what mitigation measures are both necessary and feasible to deliver the scheme safely.

National Highways shared its 2019 option assessment work for the M6 Lune Gorge scheme with local stakeholders, which considered mitigation measures, including the consideration of temporary slip roads at junction 38.

Following further stakeholder engagement, National Highways revisited this option and commissioned a feasibility exercise in August 2025. They presented their findings from the feasibility exercise in September 2025. Subsequently, BWB Consulting have put forward alternative proposals on behalf of local stakeholders. We are keen to work with local people and National Highways have committed to review these further proposals. National Highways will feed back on this.

Between 1 September 2025 and 14 April 2026, all recorded closures associated with preparatory works were partial closures only, affecting a single northbound or southbound carriageway, or lane closures. There were 18 overnight carriageway closures, each operating within a standard nine hour window (8pm – 5am), giving up to 162 hours of partial closures. In addition, lane closures from January 2026 total up to 270 hours. There were no full closures affecting both directions simultaneously during this period.

The M6 Lune Gorge bridge works are being undertaken to avoid future emergency interventions, such as unplanned closures or restrictions, which would have greater adverse impacts on local businesses, tourism and employment in Cumbria. These works will maintain the M6 as a safe and dependable corridor for freight, commerce and local communities for years to come.

National Highways has undertaken over 60 engagement sessions since 2023 to understand the local impact. National Highways is planning the works to minimise impact as far as possible and will continue to engage with local stakeholders to seek further mitigations where feasible.

Since 2023, National Highways has undertaken extensive engagement on the Lune Gorge project, including plans for M6 Junction 38, to understand its impacts and identify ways to reduce disruption. This has included meetings with Members, local authorities, industry bodies, residents and local businesses. National Highways has held over 60 engagement meetings and events, including four public information events in May and August 2025.

In addition, National Highways has established a Stakeholder Engagement Group to support ongoing communication with local stakeholders as the scheme progresses. The Department and National Highways recognise the importance of meaningful engagement for schemes of this scale and duration.

For most of the M6 Lune Gorge works, traffic, including freight, will continue to use the M6 via a contraflow arrangement, which has been assessed as providing sufficient capacity to avoid significant delays. National Highways does not anticipate significant changes to freight movements as a result.

A limited number of overnight and weekend full closures of the M6 will be required for safety reasons. For full closures between junction 38 and 39, traffic will use a fully signed diversion route via Junction 36 and the A6, A591 and A590, as agreed with relevant local highway authorities. This approach is intended to maintain connectivity between England, Scotland and Northern Ireland throughout the works.

National Highways is currently assessing the latest proposals for temporary slip roads at M6 Junction 38 and will feedback on this in due course.

Heugh Street bridge in South Shields was closed over four months ago by the council, as it deemed it to be unsafe. It was used by over 5,000 vehicles per day and the closure is damaging my local economy. The council is currently unable to give any timescale for reopening the bridge and I am led to believe there is no funding for it to do so anyway. Can my hon. Friend the Minister please assist us in any way at all?

The Department has not made a formal national assessment of the impact of long-term road or bridge closures on small businesses. These impacts vary significantly depending on the scale of works, local travel patterns, and the mitigation measures put in place by the local highway authority. However, we expect highway authorities to plan and coordinate works in line with their duties under the Traffic Management Act 2004 and the Co‑ordination Code of practice including ensuring works are properly coordinated and communicating clearly with affected residents and businesses.

There is no general entitlement to compensation for loss of trade arising from properly executed road or street works. This position has been maintained by successive governments. Limited statutory compensation exists only for gas and water companies under sector specific legislation; there are no equivalent duties for electricity or telecoms. Any discretionary support is a matter for local authorities or utilities.

We continue to encourage authorities and works promoters to maintain clear, proactive engagement with local businesses during extended works, supported by recent regulatory steps to improve coordination and reduce avoidable disruption.

National Highways first assessed the potential for temporary slip roads during the project’s optioneering stage in 2019. Further consideration took place during early design development, and the option was not taken forward at that time due to spatial constraints, value for money considerations, the need for significant lane and speed restrictions, and the likelihood of a costly extension to the overall construction period. The construction programme and design was then taken forward on that basis.

In 2025, following engagement with local stakeholders, National Highways committed to revisit this option, with a feasibility exercise carried out in August 2025. This re-considered the option of temporary slip roads. The exercise supported the conclusions during the early design phase; specifically, that temporary slip roads were unsuitable due to the space needed to construct the bridge decks, as well as representing poor value for money. During 2025, the programme assessed a wide range of options to improve connectivity, and resulted in the decision to defer work on Lawtland House bridge to a future date, improving local connectivity during the construction period.

When National Highways presented their findings from the feasibility exercise, a revised construction methodology was submitted by BWB Consulting on behalf of local stakeholders in October 2025. National Highways has committed to review this proposal from BWB consulting to see if it has presented an alternative viable solution. The review will conclude in January 2026.