This paper describes the involvement of the private sector in the management of the UK's road network. Consultants are being used increasingly to manage the maintenance of some strategic roads. Selection is on quality and competitively priced bids. The key gain is that the private sector has a major incentive to bring the road to a high standard of maintenance, resulting in better quality roads and long term maintenance savings. DBFO (Design, build, finance and operate) is being extended to roads which do not lend themselves to conventional tolling. The concept is to encourage the private sector to optimise the construction and maintenance regime by sharing risks and investing private finance. There is a strong incentive to minimise disruption to motorists as there are penalties for lane closures. The operator maintains the road to specified standards for a thirty year period and must hand over the road network with at least ten years of design life remaining.
Abstract