Little Book of Live Labs 2: save money, time and carbon
Live Labs 2 shares proven ideas for local roads
The Little Book of Live Labs 2 - a practical guide showing how cutting carbon on local roads can also save money and time - has been launched today at Highways UK.
The Little Book of Live Labs 2 brings together, for the first time, the top lessons, evidence, and tools from the Department for Transport funded £30 million Live Labs 2 programme. It means local highway authorities across the UK can adopt proven innovations rather than start from scratch.
The publication’s key message is that cutting carbon doesn’t have to cost more: carbon led approaches can help local highway authorities save money, work more efficiently and make local roads more resilient.
ADEPT Live Labs 2, funded by the Department for Transport (DfT), has spent three years testing new ideas on real roads across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Seven local authority-led projects, working with commercial and academic partners across four interconnected themes, have examined how local roads can be planned, maintained with carbon considered alongside cost, time and performance.
Across the programme, the Live Labs have saved money on street lighting, materials and maintenance, freed up staff time by reducing inspections and repeat visits and shortened construction programmes by rethinking how major works are delivered.
The book sets out the 10 big ideas that authorities can use now, from procurement and carbon budgeting to street lighting and verge management, alongside a portfolio of proven products, materials and techniques. The £30 million investment has already done much of the heavy lifting, creating evidence and learning that can be adapted to local circumstances.
The book also sets out calls to action for local highway authorities and the sector. These focus on the system changes needed to turn successful innovation into everyday practice. Recommendations for government will follow in the programme's final report to DfT in spring 2027.
Giles Perkins, Programme Director for Live Labs 2, said:
“Low carbon doesn't have to mean higher costs: Live Labs 2 has proven that. This document shows local authorities how to save money, time and carbon using approaches that have already been tested on real roads.
“As local road networks face fiscal pressure, ageing assets and more extreme weather, we need decisions that consider cost, time and carbon outcomes together, rather than treating carbon as a separate goal. That's how we maintain and improve our roads, making them cheaper to run and more resilient for the future.
“The priority now is for the whole sector to work together to use this evidence. I'd urge decision makers, influencers and practitioners to read the document, look through the ideas and start putting them into practice.”
The Little Book of Live Labs 2 is available here.
