Utilities Companies to need permit to dig up Lewisham's roads

I've recently received the following briefing note from Lewisham Highways department, which might be of interest, and sounds like good news:

"Lewisham has been successful in its application to run a street works permitting scheme.

Lewisham along with Transport for London, The City of London and 17 other boroughs submitted a common application called The London Permit Scheme to the Department of Transport in August. This application has now been approved with an expected start date of 11th January, although this date has yet to be confirmed.

The scheme requires a permit to be granted before works can be undertaken on the public highway. Permitting will enable Lewisham to better plan and coordinate road works throughout the borough offering benefits such as opportunities for utility companies to work together at sites. This will aid the smooth flow of traffic and reduce disruption for road users.
For further information please follow link to the TfL media page."