Everyone provided valuable contributions that reinforced our hypotheses or made me consider whether we’d been asking the right questions.
Policy Challenge
I wanted to develop better evidence-based policymaking for implementing a ‘dig once’ policy for roads throughout London, working with infrastructure providers and highways authorities while future-proofing this policy against climate change and evolving demand.
Learning Journey
Although roadworks are inevitable, there are many steps that can mitigate and minimise their impact. Existing policy was not having much effect, so my Policy Fellowship explored how engineers can contribute to streamlining infrastructure and public realm works. I was specifically trying to understand the needs and priorities of stakeholders, from reputation and PR to cost and carbon reductions.
I haven’t resolved all of my questions with the Policy Fellowships programme, but I feel better rounded to tackle tasks that come from an engineering direction, and I now have access to this technical community, which I can reach out to with any question. Exposure to systems thinking encouraged my entire team to better understand what different stakeholders care about.
Academy Fellows recommended that I speak to providers, regulators and other stakeholders like the British Standards Institution (BSI) and UK Collaboratorium for Research on Infrastructure and Cities (UKCRIC). This could help to improve asset registers, change the existing paradigm so that streets are viewed as assets rather than burdens requiring maintenance, and to study international best practice. I am now investigating the creation of a data association for infrastructure, inspired by existing initiatives in the oil and gas industry. I am planning a 50-year audit of the powers and limitations of highways authorities to develop a cross-government paper outlining recommendations for change.
Impact
Systems thinking is already shaping Greater London Authority policies when thinking about infrastructure resilience or mandating data sharing, and evidence from the Fellowship Programme will support the forthcoming Mayor of London’s Infrastructure Strategy. The Policy Fellowships programme has also had a positive influence beyond my initial policy challenge. For example, we are now close to getting a Chief Scientific Advisor for London and this very much came on the back of the programme.