Liverpool Live Labs

What We Delivered

Key objectives include:

• Supporting Liverpool’s Net Zero 2030 goal by cutting highway carbon emissions.
• Creating a scalable “Ecosystem of Things” approach to pinpoint and address carbon hotspots.
• Testing innovative low-carbon materials, technologies, and construction methods.
• Embedding early-stage whole-life carbon and cost optioneering into highways maintenance decisions.
• Supporting transparent, auditable decision-making across live maintenance schemes.

As a core delivery partner, Pell Frischmann led the development of the Carbon Hierarchy Lens (CHL) approach. This approach embeds the principles of “build less, build differently and build better” at the earliest stages of highways schemes. It’s aim was to encourage project teams to assess whether an intervention is necessary, explore alternative ways to achieve the desired outcomes, and identify opportunities to use lower-carbon materials or methods before finalising design decisions.

In addition, we developed the PF Options Configurator a digital optioneering tool used to operationalises the CHL approach by enabling users to compare whole-life carbon and whole-life cost for alternative materials and maintenance strategies. The tool assesses impacts across PAS 2080 lifecycle stages A–D and presents results in a format that supports clear, transparent and auditable decisions.

Unlike traditional tools used later in the design process, the Configurator provides early-stage, whole-life insight linked to scheme need, material selection and asset management practice, making carbon a driver of decisions rather than a retrospective metric.

The development of the PF Options Configurator followed a user-led and iterative process. Initial stages focused on understanding LCC’s operational needs, available data sources and preferred ways of working. Early interface designs were developed and presented to LCC, before the application was built and tested through a closed-loop process to ensure robustness and usability.

An independent review was conducted of all carbon calculations to provide additional assurance. Whole-life costing functionality was also added to ensure that carbon and cost outputs were directly comparable. Once validated, the Configurator was issued to a test group within Liverpool City Council, with structured feedback informing final refinements before wider deployment.

Developing a CHL approach of this scale required close collaboration with local authorities, academic institutions, the ADEPT Centre for Excellence, industry specialists, and expert panels. This cooperation ensured that the framework incorporates diverse perspectives, the latest research, and remained adaptable to the evolving needs of sustainable infrastructure.

Outcomes

The CHL Toolkit and PF Options Configurator was applied across multiple live maintenance schemes in Liverpool, supporting optioneering, material selection and maintenance planning before designs were finalised.

More than 10 live maintenance schemes were assessed using the approach, providing a transparent audit trail and informing material choices. Scheme-level outcomes include 8%-45% whole-life carbon reduction from pavement material choices, with further material-specific savings evidenced through trials, including cold-applied MMA markings and photoluminescent surfacing.

The development process, which incorporated both decision-making elements and coding, was inherently non-linear. Iterative development proved crucial; we evaluated each outcome and systematically learned from coding errors, ultimately identifying effective solutions. Collaboration was essential to developing a solution of this scale.

Engaging project partners from the outset helped address key requirements and establish robust data collection. This included monthly meetings with the core project management team (LCC and Colas) and quarterly sessions with wider stakeholders.

Throughout the project, we enhanced and refined the methodology to support the early identification of sustainability benefits during Liverpool’s design and maintenance activities. Although bespoke to LCC, the toolkit was designed for replication: other councils can adopt the method by incorporating their own asset inventories, cost libraries, maintenance regimes and policy objectives, while retaining the established framework, calculation approach and assurance process. This created a scalable model to support local authorities in decarbonising highways and delivering sustainable change across communities.

The approach was also explored with Aberdeen City Council and Newcastle City Council, demonstrating its adaptability across regions. We continue to share sector wide learning via ADEPT, CIHT, Highways UK and PIARC, supporting the DfT’s objective for Live Labs innovations to become mainstream practice.

The project has also highlighted the value of practitioner-led design. Embedding highways engineers, asset managers, procurement staff and sustainability specialists in the development process ensured that the tool was intuitive, operationally relevant and aligned with real-world constraints. This usability has been critical to adoption, enabling non-carbon specialists to understand trade-offs quickly and make informed decisions without extensive training.

As more authorities adopt the toolkit, the collective dataset will grow, improving forecasting accuracy and accelerating a sector-wide shift to low-carbon, whole-life highways management. By embedding whole-life carbon governance within standard practice, LCC has established a model that can deliver sustained decarbonisation benefits across multiple investment cycles.