MP's report reveals impact of roadworks plague on residents

LAM CALLS FOR ACTION AFTER POLLING KENT CONSTITUENTS

- By SIMON FINLAY

A MAJOR survey carried out by a Kent MP has revealed 80 per cent of the county’s residents blame roadworks for frequently disrupting their daily lives.

Weald of Kent MP Katie Lam carried out the study in March to gauge public opinion on an issue felt across the county.

Nearly 1,500 of her constituents responded and their feedback has been included in a report published last Thursday (July 3) by the House of Commons Transport Select Committee.

Conservative Ms Lam, who was elected to her mostly rural constituency last year, said: "I hope its findings will both be illuminating in and of themselves, and also give a broader insight into transport experiences in rural England."

The county's 5,000 miles of roads are the responsibility of Kent County Council, which is now run by Reform UK.

Ms Lam said her constituency is unusual in the southeast because it has no major population centre, apart from two small towns, and more than 100 villages.

The survey found that 95 per cent of respondents travel by car, with six out of seven saying they believe the county's roads are “poor” citing potholes, road works and diversions as the main reasons for their dissatisfaction.

80 per cent of respondents said highways or utility companies digging up the roads disrupted journeys “regularly” or “all the time”.

A major bugbear across the county is a lack of advanced warning about road closures.