Major road developments, professional representation and the agricultural community in the United Kingdom

Abstract

Research indicates that farmers suffer a considerable number of economic, administrative and social difficulties during road developments. To throw light on the extent and the causes an examination was undertaken of the effects of major road developments on two Cumbrian agricultural estates in the United Kingdom. The estates differed in size, resources, and socioeconomic orientation and experience with their respective road schemes. The larger estate had more resources to plan effectively from the early stages, to enter into mutually beneficial arrangements with planners and contractors, and was able to administer the compensation negotiations effectively. The smaller, more typical, estate did not have the resources to plan effectively, and consequently suffered the usual difficulties that emerge from road developments, without reaping the benefits witnessed in the former example. The professional expertise and negotiating power available to the larger estate emerges as a crucial factor. Benefits to the National Farm would result from increasing the professional expertise available to affected farmers to provide similar negotiating capability.