Beyond Potholes: What Does a Modern Highways Maintenance Contract Need to Achieve?

Jane Crees sets out what local authorities need to know when it comes to their highways maintenance contracts.

We have been thinking a lot recently about what local authorities need from their highways maintenance contracts, particularly after working with several authorities on the procurement of their long-term arrangements.

These contracts are the quiet work-horses of public life: they rarely get much attention until something goes wrong (or become the subject of media focus on potholes). Yet they play a crucial role in supporting residents, businesses and visitors, whilst helping authorities deliver their statutory duties and wider strategic objectives.

The many requirements for such arrangements mean that the legal and contractual structures and detail matter. In our recent experience, authorities usually need to navigate the following issues:

• Awarding a contract that enables the authority to deliver its statutory highways duties.
• Covering the full range of activity, from reactive paving and pothole repairs to bespoke new infrastructure.
• Using NEC4 to achieve their service objectives and support day-to-day contract management.
• Identifying the right procurement strategy under the Procurement Act 2023.
• Providing for rapid technological development, decarbonisation and climate resilience.
• Accommodating the step-changes and current uncertainties of local government reorganisation.
• The need to deliver continuing service improvements with limited resources whilst demonstrating value for money and satisfying public opinion.

…all in the form of a contract lasting for many years.

More than a Maintenance Contract

What links these issues together is that highways maintenance contracts are increasingly being asked to do much more than maintain highways.

Authorities are looking at how these arrangements can support wider organisational objectives, whether through decarbonisation, innovation, social value, climate resilience or improved outcomes for communities. At the same time, they must remain practical, affordable and capable of delivering core services every day.

The challenge is often not simply procuring a contractor. It is creating a contractual framework that remains effective as priorities evolve, technologies develop and local government itself continues to change.

Procuring for Long-Term Value

The Procurement Act 2023 places renewed emphasis on delivering value for money and maximising public benefit. For highways maintenance contracts, that can provide an opportunity to think beyond immediate operational requirements and consider how long-term arrangements can contribute to wider outcomes for residents and places.

That is particularly important given the duration of many highways contracts. Authorities are often making decisions today that will influence how services are delivered for the next decade or more. Building in the right balance of certainty, flexibility and accountability from the outset can therefore make a significant difference to long-term success.

At Sharpe Pritchard we know all this is challenging but possible, and requires the creation of practical documentation, responsive to change and complexity, and that continues to deliver long after the conclusion of the procurement.

If you are working on a highways maintenance procurement, or simply starting to think about what your next contract needs to do, we would be very happy to compare notes and share our experience of supporting authorities through similar projects.

Jane Crees is a Partner at Sharpe Pritchard LLP.

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This article is for general awareness only and does not constitute legal or professional advice. The law may have changed since this page was first published. If you would like further advice and assistance in relation to any issue raised in this article, please contact us by telephone or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..