Public Transport – Narrative Summary (2008–2025)
Public satisfaction with public transport has remained relatively stable over the 18-year period of the NHT Survey, but long-term trends
NHT supports local highway authorities, combined authorities and sector partners through nationally consistent benchmarking, customer insight and performance analysis.
Through NHT CQC and the NHT Public Satisfaction Survey, NHT helps organisations understand performance, compare with peers and support better-informed decisions across highways and transport services.
Highway and transport authorities face increasing expectations around performance management, transparency and accountability.
National guidance and reporting requirements increasingly emphasise the need to:
This is reflected in the Well-managed Highway Infrastructure Code of Practice, Department for Transport reporting expectations, and the wider focus on evidence-based investment and accountability.
NHT provides a practical and nationally consistent approach to help authorities respond to these challenges.
NHT supports authorities through two complementary offers.
NHT CQC is NHT’s core benchmarking and performance improvement programme for local highway authorities.
Built around the principles of:
NHT CQC helps authorities understand and improve highway maintenance performance through:
Membership of NHT CQC includes access to the NHT Performance Management Framework (PMF), which provides nationally consistent benchmarking of highway maintenance performance.
The NHT Survey provides nationally consistent customer insight and benchmarking across highways and transport services.
It helps authorities:
The Survey can be used as a standalone source of customer insight or as part of the wider NHT performance framework.
NHT CQC is NHT’s core benchmarking and performance improvement programme for local highway authorities.
Built around the principles of:
It helps authorities:
NHT CQC and the NHT Survey provide different perspectives on performance. NHT CQC helps authorities understand operational performance, efficiency, value for money and long-term outcomes.
The NHT Survey helps authorities understand how services are experienced by customers and the public. Together, they provide a more complete and balanced understanding of performance, supporting better-informed decisions and continuous improvement.
NHT helps authorities and sector partners:
By using consistent methodologies and nationally comparable data, NHT supports a more informed and transparent approach to managing highways and transport services.
NHT works with:
Providing benchmarking, insight and analysis to support performance management, planning and decision-making.
Benchmarking & performance insight — measure local public satisfaction, cost efficiency, and service delivery quality against national and peer authority averages
Identify savings & efficiencies — the network reports over £1.5 billion saved
since 2013/14 (around £100 million in 2024/25 alone)
Shared learning & best practice — members collaborate through national and regional steering groups, workshops, and case studies
External recognition & accountability — significant for DfT funding; inclusion of NHT data in departmental incentive assessments
Confidential peer comparison — participation includes secure data sharing under NDA, enabling trustworthy comparisons
NHT is a unique, standardised, collaboration between Highway Authorities across the UK enabling comparison, knowledge sharing, and the potential to improve efficiencies by the sharing of good practice.
NHT improves the quality, efficiency and performance of local transport services.
NHT provides clear, evidence-based insights to drive improvement.
LHA members sit on the steering group to shape the NHT Network.
Gain valuable insights from NHT data, reports, and analysis to better understand performance, public perception, and opportunities for improvement in highways and transport services.
Public satisfaction with public transport has remained relatively stable over the 18-year period of the NHT Survey, but long-term trends
Public satisfaction with walking and cycling infrastructure has remained moderate throughout the life of the NHT Survey but has shown
