Appendix - Cheshire West and Chester Council Supporting Information to Pot Hole Fund Application Form

Transcription

1 Appendix - Cheshire West and Chester Council Supporting Information to Pot Hole Fund Application Form SECTION B Potholes Question B1 (A). Has your authority aligned its maintenance programme to the Government s highways maintenance funding years (i.e and )? Early in the life of Cheshire West and Chester Council (CWAC), a Member lead scrutiny review resulted in the Asset Recovery Plan. This sought to address the long standing underinvestment in our network. We announced plans for major investment in infrastructure across the borough with a 10 year programme of additional funding from Council s own resources. This investment would seek to maintain and enhance the existing asset base of the Council. In order to inform this, in 2010 we asked local people which areas we should focus on first and they identified a number of priorities including improving the road network across the borough. There is significant political commitment to invest in services for our residents, one of which is the highway network. In conjunction with the Local Transport Plan funding allocation for highway maintenance, which we spend entirely on the road network, an additional 4.5m per year of Asset Recovery capital funding has been allocated since 2011/12. This is part of the Council s capital programme namely Capital Vision and clearly identifies the additional funding until 2021 in line with government programme. This is to deliver significant enhancements in highway condition over a 10-year period, through targeted works to address structural and surface defects, along with public perceptions that local roads and footways were in a poor state of repair. The additional investment aimed to achieve improved customer satisfaction and reductions in complaints and third party claims. The table below outlines the Council s Highways Maintenance Expenditure for m m m m m Total m Capital LTP Highway Maintenance Bridges Highways Asset Recovery Total Capital Revenue Highway Maintenance Total Revenue Total Page 1

2 The Revenue figures above exclude Street Lighting, Traffic Signals and energy. This has assisted in improving the highway networks resilience to weather events. Ongoing indications are that the rate of deterioration of the road network has reduced, which is supported by the fact that the numbers of carriageway Category 1 defects i.e. those requiring repair within 24 hours is reducing. Part of the additional funding has been directed towards repairing and replacing drainage systems that were damaged or overwhelmed by recent flooding events. This funding would normally have been spent on carriageways and footways. This work is mostly hidden and does not immediately become apparent, however, without an effective drainage system any permanent, structural repairs would be short lived. Question B1 (B). Has your authority adopted the principle that prevention is better than cure in determining the balance between structural, preventative and reactive maintenance activities in order to improve the resilience of the highway network and to minimise the occurrence of potholes in the future? The additional funding allocated by the Council over recent years has started to stabilise the condition of the network through targeted preventative and permanent repairs and programmed maintenance works. In maximising the life of a road we aim to get 50 years out of the surface meaning that we would need to undertake structural maintenance on 2% of the network each year, we currently doing about 1%. The 50 years is made up of, 25 years from the initial surface followed by two treatments of preventative works which should last 10 years each. The last 5 years would be managed through reactive works. This is a generalisation and each road can be affected by many issues, the drainage, the foundations of the initial construction, the utility activity on the road, the traffic volume and use and the impact of winter. By selecting the right treatment, at the right time, in the right location, our highway maintenance is undertaken in the most cost effective way. These works are targeted at reducing the overall maintenance costs of deteriorating parts of the network, with continued consideration being given to costs per year. Because we are not constantly patching and fixing old repairs, we have been able to focus resources on better planned repair and maintenance. This has enabled us to repair much greater lengths of road than we had been able to previously. 2009/ / / / /14 Structural maintenance treated (km) Preventative maintenance treated (km) Total treated (km) Page 2

3 Since the start of the Council in 2009 we have treated, in total, 630km - 473km of preventative works, surface dressing and the like and 157km of structural works. The worst first approach to road condition is not the most cost-effective use of funds in the long term. Therefore the programme of works is planned, with a mixture of structural schemes but with the emphasise on preventative works, resurfacing early rather than reconstructing, or surface dressing regularly rather than resurfacing, while still repairing those sections of road that need urgent repair. This is the most cost effective use of resources to manage the network over the long term. Using this approach CWAC has significantly slowed the decline in of the condition of the highway network investing in preventative treatments rather than concentrating solely on the more costly structural replacement, making the existing surface last longer. The statistic are now moving in the right direction: the condition of our network has stabilised and in most categories it is improving, the revenue budget has reduced, the number of reported potholes is generally falling, the number of claims received has levelled out after the server winters and the overall number of customer enquiries is falling. National highway condition surveys on our road network shows: A Roads - a steady state; B&C Roads - a slight improvement over the three years 2010/ /13 Unclassified - an improvement in the green as we undertake works but that the network is still in a slight decline. The length of these roads in the amber has seen an improvement as the preventative works are carried out. This is in contrast to most other authorities in the country, where significant decline has been highlighted. A Road Network Principal Roads NI130.1 [NI168] Survey Year UKPMS % RED Defect UKPMS % Amber Defect UKPMS % Green Defect B & C Road Network Page 3

4 Non Principal Roads NI130.2 [NI169] Survey Year UKPMS RED % Defect UKPMS Amber % Defect UKPMS Green % Defect Note: In 2010/11 there was a step change in the calculation of the information Unclassified Roads BVPI 224b Survey Year _2014 UKPMS RED % Defect UKPMS Amber % Defect UKPMS Green % Defect Question B1 (C). Has your authority ensured that appropriate competencies have been made available to make the right choices when designing and specifying techniques and materials for the maintenance and repair of highways? Note - these competencies can be secured through training, collaboration with neighbouring authorities or external advice. In 2009 Cheshire West and Chester Council made a conscious decision to review our approach to reactive repairs which included the filling/repair of potholes. It was decided to go back to basics and look at how pothole repair work was identified and what instruction was issued to a contractor to carry out a repair. It was important to breakdown various stages of the process whilst looking at the core elements such as engagement, training, innovation, asset management and continual development. Another key factor for the review was public perception and an element of bad press the authority received relating to poor coordination, planning and workmanship. Members of the service team were selected to act as champions and these individuals still act as a point of contact as we continually look at innovative ideas that will enhance our efficiencies when dealing with reactive/preventative techniques. Page 4

5 The following core elements were addressed utilising various techniques: Engagement It was important to understand who was involved in the overall process and what their role was to ensure we were able to maintain a safe sustainable network. Going back to basics the client meets with the contractor s workforce and management team on a regular basis to discuss operational requirements whilst emphasising the need for continual feedback albeit positive or areas for development; Training the review highlighted our own skills-gaps, therefore, staff attended various training events that were structured to address a lack of consistency when identifying and raising defect jobs. It was evident material choice was a key factor, so we enlisted the help of a specialist in this area, Jeff Farrington, who delivered a course Making the best use of Maintenance Budgets ; Cost Analysis It was important to educate those concerned in relation to unit costs. All staff are now fully aware of what our unit costs are and we emphasise the importance of this when assessing sections of our network for repair; Asset Management we are now in a position whereby we can provide evidence of all pothole repairs on our network as we have a consistent approach to data capture, coordination and delivery. This has proved beneficial when providing a robust defence to third party clams and Freedom of Information requests relating to reactive repair work; Coordination pothole repairs are categorised in accordance with our Code of Practice. Utilising co-location with our term service provider and the implementation of a reactive works coordinator has improved our overall efficiency and outputs; Champions issue guidance notes to ensure we maintain our consistent approach and our strategy is to look at this as work in progress and continually look for further improvements; Officers attend external training events which enable them to network with other Clients, Service Providers, Contractors, and Specialist Suppliers. Innovation is always high on the agenda and those involved are encouraged to educate other staff within the service; We work closely with neighbouring authorities looking at bespoke repair techniques and the possibilities of a joined-up approach that may result in efficiency discounts. Our current Term Service Contract was awarded following collaboration with Shropshire County Council and our joined up approach to reactive repairs has led to efficiency discounts and data capture improvements. Our ability to log individual pothole repairs has enhanced our ability to capture an up to date records in our asset management system. Benefits such as calculating Page 5

6 maintenance costs per Km length of network and supporting evidence when bidding for additional finance is readily available should the need arise. Question B1 (D). Does your authority co-ordinate with other parties working on the highway short and long term programmes of work activities for up to four years in advance? CWAC are an active member of the North West Region Traffic Managers forum through which programmes of major works and their impact are articulated across the region. This is in addition to our locally focussed quarterly coordination meetings held with works promoters. We work closely with both the Highways Agency and the North Wales Trunk Road Agency sharing works programmes and adopting a coordinated approach to delivering our strategic network improvements. The Council uses Cloud Amber and Elgin to publish roadworks on a web map which is updated every few minutes. This helps to helps drive economic and social benefits by: Allowing us to coordinate and plan both our own works and those of other works promoters, thereby reducing the impact on congestion and journey times; enables us to share services and reduce costs by using common platforms, which have been custom integrated; and inform the travelling public, elected representatives, neighbouring transport authorities, emergency services and the haulage industry about current and future roadworks. Question B1 (E). Has your authority considered the guidance provided in the ADEPT report Potholes and Repair Techniques for Local Highways and adopted as appropriate to your local circumstances? CWAC has invested in training staff to understand the causes of defects within the highway to make informed decisions on the choice of appropriate defect repair methods to be used. As part of the development of carriageway and footway life cycle plans we have created decision trees through engagement with staff, partner organisations and information on best practice such as contained within the ADEPT pothole repair techniques and Potholes Review documents, to provide repair guidance specific to our road network. Question B1 (F). Has your authority developed a detailed highway inspection manual and have put appropriate training in place for your Highway Inspectors? The Council has in place a detailed highway inspection manual. The strategy used by the Authority to assess the frequency of inspections follows the risk based approach for safety inspections of the Well-maintained Highways code of practice for highway maintenance management. The hierarchy adopted for the Page 6

7 network categorisation and frequency of inspection is however the national road classification i.e. A, B, C and U, with sub classifications of Urban and Rural. This inspection manual sets the standard for highway safety inspections on the highway network. In most cases following the advice given is adequate, but staff engaged on safety inspections will always be expected to apply engineering judgement as not every eventuality can be covered in the document. All details of inspections, defects and intended repairs are recorded together with details of when subsequent repairs are carried out. In addition, sections with no defects are positively recorded. The manual is available if required. All Highway Safety Inspectors are mentored on a basis to ensure they are fully acquainted with the Code of Practice and can carry out the inspections effectively. The inspectors carry portable devices on which the Code of Practice is stored for reference during inspections. Question B1 (G). Does your authority use technology and systems for the effective identification and management of potholes? Potholes and other defects on the highway are identified through a number of sources. We have web and customer service based fault reporting systems which supplement the defects that are identified on the network through programmed safety inspections. The defect reporting and works ordering processes are automated to reduce the time taken to undertake repairs. The number of reported enquiries is generally falling since the Council s additional investment of 4.5m per annum started. Pothole enquiries are those reported through the Council s call centre or the web pages. The estimated number of potholes fixed across the Borough in 2013 was 29,458. Question B1 (H). Does your authority have a public communications process in place that provides clarity and transparency in the policy and approach to repairing potholes? This should include a published policy and details of its implementation, including the prevention, identification, reporting, tracking and repair of potholes. Page 7

8 CWAC has a link on the Council s main webpage to allow the reporting of defects such as pot holes, street lights not working, etc. The enquiry goes directly to our asset management system, Confirm, where it is directed to the responsible officer to assess and deal with the enquiry. As the enquiry is being dealt with it can be tracked and updated in terms of its status. At any time through the process, the officer can update or reply to the customer providing they have left a valid address or phone number. Question B1 (I). Does your authority monitor public satisfaction with road, footway and cycleway condition and report annually through the National Highways and Transport Public Satisfaction Survey or their own surveys? CWAC has been a participant in the National Highways & Transport Public Satisfaction Survey (NHT) for the last three years. This survey collects public perspectives on, and satisfaction with, highways and transportation services in local authority areas and covers a large area of the Country. The survey, undertaken by Ipsos Mori, is a random postal survey sent to 4,500 households across Cheshire West. What the public voted for - the top 3 in terms of Importance (% of votes) were: The Condition of Roads 22.07% Pavements & Footpaths 19.73% Safety on Roads 16.58% The top 3 in terms of Budget for Improvement (% of votes) are: The Condition of Roads 25.05% Pavements & Footpaths 18.80% Traffic & Congestion levels 14.09% CWAC have been involved in the National Highways & Transport (NHT) Survey for the last two years. Consequently, a comparison can be made with 2011 figures to see what has changed over the last 12 months. Overall there has been little change in the public satisfaction with the service received across the transport and road environment with 54% satisfied. As shown above the condition of roads & footpaths are considered as the most important issues to the public and are the two areas of the transport service the public wish to see increased budget for improvements made. Looking at the report in more detail both are also areas that the public have recognised that there have been significant improvements, confirming the data the service monitors in terms of road condition and numbers of enquiries received both of which show improvements. In addition to the annual NHT survey, CWAC undertakes Borough wide surveys of residents and locality focused groups to gauge customer satisfaction on highway Page 8

9 services and network condition. These include the Highways Public Satisfaction Survey of residents and the Places Survey of Area Programme Boards. Additional anecdotal information is provided on customer satisfaction through the results of the Local environmental quality assessments undertaken on the network by our Streetscene staff. Comparison data is available through participation in the annual ALARM survey and through membership of the Midlands Highway Service Improvement Group and via our membership of APSE. Question B1 (J). Does your authority adopt permanent repairs as the first choice when repairing potholes? Through the new Term Highways Contract with Ringway, the Highway Service continues to explore and develop more innovative and different ways of working to provide a more effective service. Consequently, the Highway Service has reviewed its strategy for dealing with carriageway defects from undertaking repetitive temporary repairs to a managed approach through which permanent repairs are undertaken first time, where possible. These will last between 8 and 10 times longer, generating longer term savings. By doing repairs that last, there has been a huge reduction in the need to return to repairs that have failed. This approach is already being recognised as best practice and enabling the Service to better programme works. As a result, we have reviewed our code of practice for safety inspections introducing a 5 day response category for certain defects based on risk. This enables the Service to better address the risks associated with defects on the network, whilst providing our Section 58 defence and enabling the Service to make better use of maintenance resources through programming repairs. Safety inspections (Highways Act 1980 Section 58 Inspections) are a core part in our repudiation of highway third party claims. It is compliance with the requirements of the Authority s Inspection Code of Practice that is usually tested in litigated cases. Question B1 (K). Has your authority adopted dimensional definitions for potholes based on best practice as part of its maintenance policy? Vehicles are in constant contact with the carriageway with a rolling action and therefore the vertical dimension of a defect is the primary indicator of intervention. It is this which is challenged in court. CWAC therefore has stated vertical dimensions relating to carriageway potholes. The vertical dimension that we specify for intervention is 50mm. The usage of the footway is markedly different to the carriageway and we do apply a 25mm vertical and <250mm linear dimension to footway depressions/humps. 250mm being the approximate footprint that would encounter the hazard. These definitions have been arrived at through legal advice and successful defences at court. Page 9

10 B2: Does your authority adopt any innovative methods to help repair potholes? This could include, for example, specialist pothole maintenance crews. Innovation is not something new to CWAC. It has long been in our thoughts and continues to be high on our agenda when dealing with all aspects of preventative/reactive highway maintenance on our network. We have refined our techniques looking at material selection, methods of repair, coordination, forward programming and short/medium long-term solutions. Where possible CWAC will carry out a first time permanent repair to all potholes reported or recorded for repair on our network. This has dramatically reduced the number of site revisits and the negative public perception of poor workmanship. Added to this is a financial saving as mobilisation carries approximately 50% of the overall cost of the work. The authority has a strategic approach to pothole repairs and the implementation of client/contractor coordinators has made a significant impact on daily outputs. We have a consistent workflow that has improved gang efficiencies and minimised the amount of travel time between sites that is associated with this type of work. Our attention to detail when coordinating and forward programming has resulted in defect jobs being grouped and allocated to gangs who are able to maximise their resource. Most pothole repairs undertaken are carried out by our Term Contractor using Community Road Care Teams (CRCT S). Investment in the deployment of CRCT S to deliver a more responsive and higher level of service provides a quick response to dealing with day-to-day enquiries and service requests from the public, so that work can be carried out responsively. A significant proportion of the work the CRCT S carry out is short-term expedient repairs to keep the network in a safe condition. This comprises not only potholing but minor patching where appropriate and continues to enhance the service to the community. Our contract specification was written in such a way as to provide gangs that carry all the necessary plant and materials and to undertake pothole repairs on various categories of road. Selection of appropriate materials is a key factor when programming pothole repairs. CWAC has implemented a matrix that coincides with our road hierarchy. All A Road repairs are carried out using Hot Rolled Asphalt 35/14 and other materials are selected on road type basis, speed and depth of defects recorded. Following on from our engagement with the contractor s workforce we acted on their feedback and implemented hot boxes as part of the specification for our CRCT s. This has resulted in a reduction in waste material and the associated cost of disposal. We have a number of repair techniques and their workflow is determined and coordinated to maximise daily outputs. Repair costs range from m2 but coordinators will always look for the most cost effective solution. Page 10

11 Technical officers are fully conversant with future maintenance programmes and this will influence the type of defect repair they record. When considering repairs techniques staff are encouraged to look at whole life costing and when numerous defects are recorded and repaired consideration is given to submitting schemes into our annual surface treatment programme. Innovate methods have been implemented and we are keen to talk to any organisation who could provide added value to our processes. Our long-term goal is to target zero waste and enter into partnerships to recycle not dispose whilst looking to engage into an in-situ process that will set the benchmark others will follow. We have also been keen to try proprietary products in an attempt to improve performance. Amongst other, we regularly use the following methods of working depending on site locations and extent of treatment required: Rejuvopatch - an exclusive road patching and road repair product, designed both as an immediate pothole repair solution or as a surface treatments solution. A bespoke, specially-mixed, cold micro asphalt, Rejuvopatch is quickly applied, maximising safety and minimising traffic disruption. Applied all year round, Rejuvopatch stays in the pothole and often outlasts the surrounding surface. Relay an infrared process which uses an infrared heating unit to heat inplace asphalt to soften it to a workable state, then new asphalt can be added which fuses seamlessly to the old. Jetpatcher/Archway use high velocity air to prepare the area of the defect and to deliver emulsion and aggregate to seal, fill and compact the repair. This results in a quality repair that takes very little time and avoids further damage to the road base. B4: Does your authority regularly consult and seek feedback on its highways maintenance regime, including potholes, with key stakeholders? If yes, please provide details as an annex as part of your bid. The issue of the condition of the Highway Network and action taken to resolve potholes is regularly discussed at the Council s community forums. The public are encouraged to become a Road care reporter at these events and demonstrations showing how to report highway defects such as pothole are regularly given. Between December 2013 and February 2014, the Council consulted with the public on draft budget proposals for the next three years (2014/15 to 2016/17). The proposals involved a review of expenditure on highways maintenance with the aim of achieving a 10% reduction in total spend through savings in ancillary works such as grass and hedge cutting and the exploration of opportunities to join up activities with streetscene. Options to be explored included better targeting of services, management consolidation, integration with other parts of the Council, transfer of services to other organisations, and further contract efficiencies. This proposal would achieve savings of 500,000 in 2014/15, increasing to 1 million a year from 2015/16 Page 11

12 onwards. It is also proposed to review the efficiency of operation of winter maintenance provision to achieve savings of 100,000 a year from 2014/15 onwards. Feedback from the consultation on Priority Three: Ensuring our services are better targeted towards needs, was that some respondents saw maintaining roads an important priority. It was suggested that reducing maintenance of verges could have a negative impact on the image of the borough. Page 12

13 SECTION C Asset Management C1 (A). Has your authority got an up to date asset management policy and strategy? CWAC has an Asset Management Plan through which it has developed policies and strategies and life cycle plans for the major asset groups, which link in to the Authority s Corporate and Local transport Plans. For our carriageway and footway assets we have developed an asset recovery strategy which is linked to the Authority s 10 year vision. This strategy is being supported by the Council through the provision of an additional annual capital investment of 4.5M in the network. As a result of this investment, the Council has pledged to provide effective transport links and improve the standards of maintenance of the public highway. The Authority is committed to providing a good service which has been defined as: reducing the number of category 1 (potentially dangerous) defects on the network; having low numbers of roads identified from condition survey as requiring maintenance; achieving an appropriate balance between reactive repairs and planned maintenance; creating a high level of public satisfaction; and delivering standards that can be sustained into the future using identified funding levels. dcare/tamp.aspx C1 (B). Does your authority communicate relevant information associated with asset management through engagement with your relevant stakeholders when you set requirements, make decisions and report performance? The Council has an effective communication process. We have in place a Highways Asset Management Plan and Asset Recovery Strategy which have resulted in the council supporting a 4.5m investment in our asset management approach. Staff from Highways regularly attend Parish and Town Council meetings, local community meetings and forums to articulate works programmes and our approach to asset management. We publish our annual works programmes on the web and report performance through Council committee reports at meetings which are all web based and available to the public live. Page 13

14 C1 (C). Does your authority have an asset management register? The Council uses Pitney Bowes Confirm system for its asset management register. This is a modular software solution for the maintenance and management of public infrastructure assets and services including Highways, Lights, Structures, Street Works, Property Maintenance, Grounds, Trees, Cleansing and Waste. Utilising this extensive database, CWAC has a wealth of both condition and historic data on our highway assets going back more than 10 years. This includes previous works, materials used, customer enquiries and claims data, which we use to develop our asset strategies. Work to date has identified expected life of surface dressing and pot hole repair materials. We are utilising Yotta Ltd bespoke Horizons system to aid scheme prioritisation and optimisation of treatments. Confirm's location-aware graphical display engine enables users to create, view, edit and control assets from a map view. The location attributes, condition, and actions associated with any linear or segmented asset can be displayed in a variety of graphical and tabular formats. Users can access asset data directly on hand-held devices and with the corporate GIS. The integrated MapViewer supports a number of different GIS systems, which promotes usability and adds value to our investment in existing GIS products. Connectivity between Confirm and the GIS allows users to interactively drill-down from the asset to the map and vice-versa, and to visualise point events. The thematic mapping facilities of the GIS can also be utilised to spatially model data stored with the asset. Integrated, mobile communications give highway inspectors the tools they need to effectively carry out their work in the field. Working with hand-held devices, inspectors always have the data right at their fingertips, and can accurately capture and return the latest information from the field. Field personnel are able to respond and complete tasks without needing to return to base or arrange follow-up visits back to the site. Confirm interfaces with our Customer Request Management (CRM) so that all customer issues are tracked as they are logged, assigned, and resolved. The CRM interface ensures that customer services staff are informed and customers can receive feedback at every stage in the process. C1 (D). Does your authority follow lifecycle planning principles which are used to review the level of funding and which will help support investment decisions including long term investment in your assets?. Through the adoption of an asset management approach, based on condition and asset data, CWAC has been able to target investment in our network, both structural and preventative. We have developed life cycle plans for our major highway assets and as we continue to gather further information on these and other assets we Page 14

15 propose to produce life cycle plans for individual assets, enabling the Authority to predict the optimum time and treatment for a particular part of the network. Through this approach the Authority has already identified parts of our network where the life of the asset can be extended by several years using low cost surface treatments. Timely intervention is reducing the occurrence of defects and the potential for further defects on our network. Page 15