Transport Insights

Hapless roads minister Simon Lightwood continues to own the cover-up over the unpublished evaluation reports on smart motorways, while giving nothing away.

To recap, the Department for Transport (DfT) is sitting on a total of 14 Post Opening Performance Evaluation (POPE) reports, at least nine of which were due to be completed by National Highways in 2022, and will not allow the government-owned company so publish them.

This is supposedly while it carries out “assurance”, but National Highways has said it cannot publish the reports until ministers work out how to spin the data.

Rotherham MP Sarah Champion (pictured, left) has asked two parliamentary questions (so far). The first was:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions she has had with National Highways on Post Opening Project Evaluation (POPE) reports; and what her planned timetable is for publication of existing unpublished POPE reports.

In response to which, Lightwood merely owned the cover-up without answering the question:

Post opening project evaluation (POPE) reports are detailed and complex evaluations and it is right that we take the time to fully assure findings. We are committed to transparency and will provide an update on publication in due course.

Champion then asked:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether her Department has received completed Post Opening Project Evaluation (POPE) reports from National Highways since 2021.

Despite being committed to transparency, Lightwood couldn’t even bring himself to answer this:

National Highways publishes POPE reports once they have completed governance and assurance stages online at:

https://nationalhighways.co.uk/our-roads/post-opening-project-evaluation-pope-of-major-schemes/(opens in a new tab)

We will provide an update on the publication of POPE reports the Department has received from National Highways in due course and I will ensure my honourable Friend is made aware when that happens.

The truth is that the DfT has no role in the assurance process for POPEs, unless it chooses to call them in as a way of blocking their release.

I have pointed this out and efforts are under way to get the department to clarify the formal process under which it claims to carry out this “assurance”.