Drivers ansd businessmen will be relieved to hear that a Kent County Council scheme to reduce congestion on the county’s busiest roads is now up and running.

Under the new Kent Lane Rental Scheme, companies will now be charged up to £2,000 per day for the inconvenience caused by digging up our busiest roads at peak times.

Kent is the first county council in the country to run the groundbreaking scheme, which aims to push utility contractors to work on the roads during the night and at off-peak times or to use techniques such as tunnelling more often to avoid closing the road altogether.

The scheme covers over 465 roads in Kent in the areas most susceptible to major roadwork disruption. Revenue generated from the scheme will be invested in further work to cut congestion in Kent.

KCC cabinet member David Brazier said: "We are committed to keeping all of our roads, especially the busiest routes, moving.

'We are committed to keeping all of our roads, especially the busiest routes, moving'

"This proves really difficult when companies decide to carry out their road works on our most heavily used roads during rush-hour times.

“The Kent Lane Rental Scheme forced companies to really think about the scale and duration of works on our key routes, or face a sizeable charge for the disruption they cause for Kent’s travelling public.”

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