The government has proposed the introduction of seven-day working at roadworks in order to speed up projects and cut congestion.
Secretary of state for transport Patrick McLoughlin is considering the measure, along with the imposition of ?5,000-a day fines for councils and utility firms when works overrun and cause inconvenience to motorists on A-roads due to an absence of weekend working.
If such measures are introduced, it may mean changes to worker contracts, or extra staff being taken on to fill in at the weekends.
The alternative to working over weekends would be for the road workers to lift the works and thus enable traffic to proceed unencumbered down the affected roads during weekends.
However, the plans have been questioned by spokesman for the Local Government Association Peter Box, who told the BBC sites are often left empty over weekends for "very good reasons", such as allowing concrete to dry.
He added: "These fines may mean we end up paying people to watch concrete dry because it is cheaper."
