I recently took part in a Parliamentary debate on unadopted roads, an issue that continues to come up in conversations with communities across Exmouth and Exeter East.
For those unfamiliar with the term, a road is considered “unadopted” when it has not yet been taken on by the local authority as part of the public highway network. On paper, that may sound like a technical matter. In practice, it can mean years of poor road surfaces, blocked drains and flooding. In Cranbrook, during the cold snap earlier this year, it meant roads left ungritted because nobody would accept responsibility for doing so. People were left worried about their safety simply getting in and out of their own homes.
During the debate, I raised specific concerns from local people in Cranbrook, Pinhoe and Lympstone. The pattern is consistent across all 3 communities. Families move into new homes, pay their council tax, and understandably assume that basic services will follow. Instead, they discover that their road sits in a grey area, a legal and administrative limbo where developers, district councils, county councils, utility companies and others each insist the responsibility lies elsewhere. Some homeowners have been trapped in this situation for so long that they have struggled to sell their properties.
This cannot continue. The organisations involved, including the councils that approved these developments in the first place, cannot keep passing responsibility between one another while residents are left to deal with the consequences. Planning permission is granted on the understanding that developments will be built to a proper standard and managed appropriately. When that does not happen, those who gave the green light cannot simply wash their hands of the problem. There is a clear accountability gap here, and closing it matters.
During the debate, the Minister acknowledged that clearer and more consistent standards for road adoption are needed, and recognised the problems caused when developments are left incomplete. That is a welcome start. However, acknowledgement alone is not enough, and I will continue pressing for more concrete action.
I have also submitted several Parliamentary Written Questions to establish what data the Government actually holds on the length of time between a Section 38 agreement being submitted and a road being formally adopted. The answer was telling: the Government does not hold that data, either at a national level or a local one. If ministers cannot even measure the scale of the problem, it is very difficult to argue they have a grip on it.
People in Cranbrook, Pinhoe, Lympstone and communities across East Devon deserve properly maintained roads, reliable services, and clear answers when problems arise. If you are dealing with issues relating to an unadopted road in Exmouth and Exeter East, please do get in touch with my office and I will do my best to help.
