Councillor Qaiser Azeem, cabinet member for City Transport at City of Wolverhampton Council
City of Wolverhampton Council is continuing efforts to ensure roadworks carried out by utility companies are completed promptly and to a high standard.
Water, gas and electricity providers are responsible for more than two thirds of all roadworks across Wolverhampton.
The council works closely with these organisations to help plan their activity and improve how work is delivered. All works are shared publicly via the online Causeway One Network live map to help people plan their journeys.
As part of its responsibility to keep the city moving, the council monitors utility works to ensure companies follow strict national regulations designed to minimise disruption for residents and motorists.
Where these standards are not met, the council takes appropriate action, including fines.
During 2025/26, the council issued tens of thousands of pounds in fines to utility companies under Section 74 of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991, which applies when works are unreasonably prolonged.
In the same period, hundreds of fixed penalty notices have also been issued to utility companies by the council.
The council has recently used Section 74 charges against Severn Trent Water for extended works on Kitchen Lane and Neachells Lane.
All income generated from permits and fines is reinvested into maintaining and improving the city’s highways, including road repairs and pothole prevention.
Councillor Qaiser Azeem, cabinet member for City Transport at City of Wolverhampton Council, said: “We work collaboratively with all utility companies to coordinate roadworks across the city, helping to ensure work is planned effectively and completed on time.
“We expect companies to follow the rules, and where they don’t, we will take action to protect road users and minimise disruption.
“We coordinate both our own works and those of utility providers through Causeway One Network. This useful digital tool allows our highways team, and the public, to access live information about works, including dates, locations, diversion routes and the organisation responsible.
“Everyone can use the platform to plan their journeys and minimise disruption.”
Emergency works by utility providers may sometimes be unavoidable, but companies are still required to apply for permits and comply with regulations. Those that do not are held accountable.