AIBU to think that if you cones and temporary traffic lights on a section of road that you should actually do some work there?

[ThisIsStartingToBoreMe]

Within 5 miles of my house there are 3 different sets of roadworks where the road has been narrowed down, coned off, temporary traffic lighted so it's one lane at a time - and no-one is doing any bloody work there!

So i'm being inconvenienced and delayed by about 30 minutes every day for no reason!

Does anyone know why someone would do this? And is there anyone I could complain to like the Highways Agency?

it's just prep work by a different team

But why can't the prep work be done the day before the different team come in? Why inconvenience everyone for weeks? I'm not getting the issue?

Once work starts there are periods when stuff has to be left to settle - can't do any work but you can't take the cones away.

But why can't the prep work be done the day before the different team come in? Why inconvenience everyone for weeks? Where do you live? I've never seen cones put up a week ahead. Round here, they're usually putting them out at the end of the rush hour the day actual work starts.

Complain to the Highways Agency (now Highways England I think) if it's a motorway or one of a very few trunk roads (you can see a map on their website). All other roads it's the Highways department of your local Council.

I agree, Op.

We currently have cones outside our house for work that was due to start in early October. No work has been done and the cones are still there (albeit, they've been moved onto the pavement by neighbours).

Much as I agree that there are times when work can't be done, I absolutely feel your pain OP. In fact, I'm wondering if you live near me because I feel exactly the same. I can barely remember a time when the roads here weren't impeded by an endless procession of highway works/broadband installation/resurfacing.

@ThisIsStartingToBoreMe

But why can't the prep work be done the day before the different team come in? Why inconvenience everyone for weeks? I'm not getting the issue?

Some roadworks are weather sensitive, so if top dressing or some sorts of resurfacing are programmed for a particular day or week, and then it rains hard, the work has to be postponed. It might not be for more than a day, so no point removing traffic control. But then there might be a big RTC on a main road, with a diesel dump or a car fire, so then the resurfacing crew gets diverted there instead of to your local job. Then it rains again the next day so your local job again has to be postponed.

These things happen.

YANBU Severn Trent are the worst for this around here. As soon as they get a licence for Temp lights, the lights are up and remain up for the duration of the licence regardless of what's actually happening.

I did manage to shame someone locally by tweeting pictures to our County Council - temp traffic lights for a week and only a tiny hole at one side of a huge verge area - no encroachment into the road or the pavement at all.

@ThisIsStartingToBoreMe

But why can't the prep work be done the day before the different team come in? Why inconvenience everyone for weeks? I'm not getting the issue?

Because all works are always arrange for maximum disruption - it's actually quite clever how they co-ordinate to cut off all alternative routes at the same time, too.