Steve worked for the DfT for 31 years and was presented with an OBE for his efforts in the local transport sector in 2014. Former colleague Stephen Fidler said Steve was “very highly regarded, both professionally and personally” and added that he became “nothing short of a legend in highways maintenance and wider local transport circles”. The DfT, he continued, “will be a lesser place without him”.

Writing on an online tribute page, he added that Steve Berry was noted for his “straight talking, honest and helpful advice” and built rapport with Ministers “quickly and effectively”.

Transport Minister Baroness Vere wrote that Steve was “an incredibly effective and hard working civil servant, much admired and respected by all” and was grateful for his efforts in briefing her early on in her new role about the “intricacies of roads funding and maintenance”.

CIHT’s head of policy and technical Justin Ward described Steve Berry as a “real driving force in the industry, an original thinker and character and incredibly well regarded across the highways sector. His loss to the industry will be felt by many.

“He was probably the most in demand person in the industry I knew,” added Justin. “He was often pulled away to advise Ministers who appreciated his down to earth approach and depth of knowledge of the sector. He was central to efforts to get the transport network functioning again during storm events meeting with local people and MPs.”

Steve Berry was a supporter of CIHT, helped the UK Roads Liaison Group to grow and was instrumental in reconnecting the UK to the work of the World Road Association.

Two years ago Steve took part in a CIHT event about climate change and noted that the UK needs an infrastructure system that is more resilient to challenges such as melting roads, major flooding and warped rails. The Government, public, private and other professional sectors, he said, need to work together to proactively deal with some of the issues we are facing.

Local Government Technical Advisers Group past president John Lamb said that Steve Berry had been a mainstay of work on highway maintenance and supported councils in achieving greater resilience to the impact of more intense and frequent storms. “The sector has lost a champion and I have lost dear friend,” John told TP Weekly News. “His legacy however will feature over the coming months and years.”

To read further tributes to Steve Berry, click here.

(Photograph: Adam Bowery)