Dear Sir or Madam,

What is the criteria regarding the placement of roadside adverts on
'A' roads in England and are the permissions granted documented?

Yours faithfully,

Mark Cazaly

Dear Mark Cazaly

You are right to send in your requests via the Highways Agency
Information Line (HAIL).

However, I refer to your request under the above legislation for
information, about criteria regarding the placement of roadside adverts
on 'A' road in England and permissions granted documents, which we in
the Press Office received via our HAIL team.

I am writing to advise you that, having reviewed your request for
information, we have identified that this could more appropriately be
responded to by the Department for Communities and Local Government
(DCLG). However, before we transfer the request, we request your
permission to notify the recipient organisation of your name and contact
details.

If you agree to this, please email me back and confirm your
authorisation to pass this request on, along with your name and contact
details.

Kind regards

Kelly Logan, Senior Press & PR Officer
Highways Agency | 123 Buckingham Palace Road | London | SW1W 9HA
Tel: +44 (0) 207 1534824 | b Mobile : + 44 (0) 7710 958536
Web: http://www.highways.gov.uk
GTN: 3814 4824

Safe roads, Reliable journeys, Informed travellers
Highways Agency, an Executive Agency of the Department for Transport.

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Dear Logan, Kelly,

I herewith give my permission for my details to be passed on to the
relevant body. Many thanks for your help.

Yours sincerely,

Mark Cazaly

Dear Sir or Madam,

The response to this question is now overdue. Any answers would be
appreciated.

Yours sincerely,

Mark Cazaly

Dear Mr Cazaly

I passed on your FOI request to my colleagues in the Department for
Communities and Local Government (DCLG), as soon as I received
persmission from you to do so.

Please see the email attached which I sent on to them and their
confirmation that they would deal with it.

I have copied the DCLG in - their email address is
[email address]

I apologise for the delay in a response coming to you.

Kind regards

Kelly

Kelly Logan, Senior Press & PR Officer
Highways Agency | 123 Buckingham Palace Road | London | SW1W 9HA
Tel: +44 (0) 207 1534824 | b Mobile : + 44 (0) 7710 958536
Web: http://www.highways.gov.uk
GTN: 3814 4824

Safe roads, Reliable journeys, Informed travellers
Highways Agency, an Executive Agency of the Department for Transport.

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Dear Mr Cazaly.

I am writing to acknowledge receipt at this Department of the above request. I am currently drafting a reply to this request and will send this to you as soon as possible.Please accept my sincere apologies for the fact that such a response is now overdue.

Kind Regards

Allan Stephen
Policy Adviser
Communities and Local Government
Planning System Improvement Division
1/H10
Bressenden Place
Eland House
London
SW1E 5DU

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Mr Cazaly.

Further to my e-mail of last Thursday to you, I am currently composing a suitable reply to your request.However,in order to help me do this ,I would be grateful for some clarification from you regarding this request. You ask in your original e-mail to the Highways Agency whether the permissions granted are documented. Am I correct in assuming that by this you wish to know whether records of the numbers of approved road advertisements are kept? Please let me know as soon as possible in order that I may formally respond to your request.

Kind Regards

Allan Stephen
Communities and Local Government
Planning System Improvement Division
1/H10
Eland House
Bressenden Place
London
SW1E 5DU

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Dear Allan Stephen,

I understand your confusion but I am actually trying to find out
the criteria for placing a roadside advert if there is a documented
appresal process.

Yours sincerely,

Mark Cazaly

Dear Mark Cazaly,

Thank you for contacting the Highways Agency Information Line.

I have been in contact with the Press Office for the Highways Agency,
who were previously investigating your Freedom of Information Request.
They inform me that your request was sent on to
[email address] and that the Highways Agency was not
having any further input on the request. Therefore, is Allan Stephen
someone from this organisation, as I cannot find an Allan Stephen on the
Highways Agency contacts?

Regards

Caitriona Eustace, HAIL Advisor, ID External Delivery Division
Highways Agency | National Traffic Control Centre | 3 Ridgeway, Quinton
Bus. Park | Birmingham | B32 1AF
Tel: +44 (0) 8457504030 | Fax: + 44 (0) 121 3358370
Web: http://www.highways.gov.uk

Safe roads, Reliable journeys, Informed travellers
Highways Agency, an Executive Agency of the Department for Transport

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<<080829-TO confirmation request.doc>> For the attention of Mr Mark Cazaly.

Please see the attached e-mail.

Kind Regards

Allan Stephen
Communities and Local Government
Planning System Improvement Division
1/H10
Eland House
Bressenden Place
London
SW1E 5DU

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Dear Allan Stephen,

I am considering placing roadside adverts viewable from the road
and would like to know how permission is granted and if there are
set criteria to meet.

Yours sincerely,

Mark Cazaly

Dear Mr Cazaly.

Thank you for your e-mail to me yesterday concerning roadside advertising. I am happy to provide you with the information which you requested.

Local authorities have day to day responsibility for the operation of the advertisement control system. It is therefore a matter for the relevant local authority to determine whether a particular advertisement should be permitted and the most appropriate course of action to take when an advertisement is displayed in contravention of the Town and Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) (England) Regulations 2007.

Most advertisements on land directly facing motorways and trunk roads require the express consent from the relevant local planning authority as well as prior permission from the landowner before they may be displayed lawfully. When considering whether a particular advertisement should be granted express consent the local planning authority would consult the Highways Agency on the road safety aspects of advertisements in fields alongside motorways and trunk roads. Advertisements that are likely to distract motorists are unlikely to be approved.

There are only two matters which a local planning authority must consider before granting express consent to display an advertisement. The first is the effect of the advertisement on amenity and the second is its effect on public safety.

It is an offence to display an advertisement in contravention of the Regulations. It is open to the local authority to bring a prosecution in the Magistrates' Court. The maximum fine on conviction of an offence is £2500 and for a continuing offence, £250 for each day the unlawful advertisement continues to be displayed. It is for the local planning authority to decide the appropriate course of action when an advertisement is displayed unlawfully.

I attach to this reply an e-mail which I sent to you recently concerning your earlier request about roadside advertising under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. In my e-mail I asked for clarification of part of your request,concerning whether "the permissions granted are documented." Are you still pursuing an answer to your original query from August? Please let me know,

Kind Regards

Allan Stephen
Policy Adviser
Communities and Local Governement
Planning System Improvement Division
Zone 1/H10
Eland House
Bressenden Place
London
SW1E 5DU

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