Government pledges “beautiful” design overhaul for Britain’s roads

Transport Minister John Hayes is set to announce that residents will be given the power to help decide the design, material and even colour of new roads, according to the Telegraph.

In addition, a “design council” which will include rural campaign groups, will be set up to help plan road designs.

In a speech today, Hayes will say that he wants to make new roads “beautiful” and “award-winning” rather than “brutal, crass and ugly”. Hayes says he will be influenced by the Prince’s of Wales’s work on housing design.

The minister is pledging to create “a solid set of design principles” that could shape the way roads are designed.

Among the suggestions Hayes will make are that local materials could be used to build bridges, which could be painted in sympathetic colours to create “landmarks”.

He will suggest that roads themselves could be designed to “sink softly” into the landscape and be surrounded by trees and plants.

Hayes will say: “It is perhaps ironic that we care so much about car design. About the sleek lines gracing our sports saloons. About the leather trimmed interiors, and the burr walnut dashboards … when the scene outside the car is often so ugly.

“So we want roads to be based upon principles of good design. From maintaining the right proportions in construction to use of street lighting, signage and other roads ‘furniture’ and from delivering better air quality and biodiversity.”