Report of the Strategic Director (Regeneration) to the Meeting of Environment and Waste Management Overview & Scrutiny Committee to Be Held on 01 December 2015
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Report of the Strategic Director (Regeneration) to the meeting of Environment and Waste Management Overview & Scrutiny Committee to be held on 01 December 2015. X Subject: Highways Asset Management - Progress Report Summary statement: This report provides details on the current approach to Highways Asset Management. Mike Co wlam Portfolio: Strategic Director (Regeneration) Housing, Planning & Transport Report Contact: Chris Leach – Overview & Scrutiny Area: Highway Asset Manager Phone: (01274) 434645 Environment & Waste Management E-mail: [email protected] 1. SUMMARY 1.1 This report provides details of the current approach to Highways Asset Management and in particular Highway Maintenance, Street Lighting, Highway Structures and Winter Maintenance. 2. HIGHWAY MAINTENANCE BACKGROUND 2.1 The Highway Asset 2.1.1 Bradford Council is responsible for managing and maintaining the adopted highway network throughout the Bradford district, this includes carriageways, footways, verges, highway drainage, street lighting, traffic signals, highway bridges etc. 2.1.2 Bradford’s highway asset, which is used by all residents, businesses and visitors to the area, must be fit for purpose as it is a vital contribution to the economic health of the community and reflects the quality of the environment. Ensuring the ongoing safety of all users of this network is a very high priority. The infrastructure also needs to be able to respond to environmental change and extremes of weather, hence we must ensure that we invest in the network in a timely manner and that the resources we have available are used as efficiently as possible in order to provide the maximum benefit both now and in the future. 2.1.3 The highway infrastructure is the Council’s most valuable asset. The gross replacement cost, calculated in accordance with the requirements for Whole of Government Costs, is in excess of £3 billion. 2.2 Inventory and Data Management 2.2.1 Bradford has a robust data collection methodology which ensures it meets national government survey requirements regarding road condition data collection on the principal and non-principal network. Condition data is shown in the table below, this shows the percentage of the road network where maintenance should be considered (the lower the figure the better the condition). It is worth noting that the unclassified roads are now showing a trend of deterioration, this is quite a worrying development because this type of road makes up 81% of the overall network length within the Bradford District. - 2 - Indicator Condition Rating 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 NI 168 Principal Roads (A Roads) 3 5 5 5 3 2 2 NI 169 Non Principal Classified Roads (B and C Roads) 6 6 6 5 4 3 3 BVPI 224b Unclassified Roads 5 8 8 8 7 10 10 2.2.2 In addition to the above data we also carry out inspections and surveys on the other assets including, footways, traffic signal installation / associated equipment, street lighting, bridges and other structures. 2.3 Highway Maintenance Programme Backlog and Risks 2.3.1 The Capital Highway Maintenance Programme 2015/16 is included in Appendix 2. This programme is effectively a rolling programme of work because at current funding levels only approximately 30% of the work can be completed during this financial year and therefore it represents a 3 year programme. 2.3.2 Deterioration modelling has indicated that at current funding levels investment is well below what is required to maintain a steady state road and footway condition. The capital cost for a steady state condition has been estimated at just under £6 million capital spend + around £3.5 million ongoing day-to-day revenue maintenance (approximately 50% more than current funding levels). 2.3.3 The road maintenance backlog is estimated to be approximately £48 million. This figure is based on measured deterioration values and the actual costs of returning that length of defective road surfaces throughout the district to an acceptable condition that would be resilient to further damage as a result of extreme weather events etc. 2.3.4 Another significant pressure is the continued reduction of revenue budgets. The day to day operational maintenance budget is very stretched in that we are still operating in a reactive ‘fire fighting’ type regime as opposed to the more cost effective approach that would be a more extensive planned repair programme that would also enable an improvement in overall network condition. 2.4 The Future of Highway Maintenance and Highway Asset Management - 3 - 2.4.1 The overall aims of an asset management approach is to: - - Manage effectively the condition of the network. - Maximise the effectiveness of available spend by targeting maintenance budgets on works that will make a real and lasting improvement on highway condition. - Meet the needs of current and future network users and be resilient to the effects of extreme weather events. It has clearly been shown that in the longer term, undertaking preventative maintenance delivers better value for money than letting the assets reach a point where significant renewal is required. Any reduction or break in investment could reduce the condition of assets and cost more to put right at a later date. With limited resources available, the DfT has confirmed that it is essential to prioritise highway maintenance, reflecting the economic and social importance to local communities, the need to safeguard the largest single local public asset, and to limit future liabilities that can result from not looking after the assets properly. 2.4.2 An asset Management Planning approach to the maintenance and management of the highway asset continues to be the focus of investment. However this can only be completely successful if there are sufficient funds to facilitate a suitable cyclic programme of works. In Bradford, as in many authorities across the country that would require additional investment in highways maintenance. 2.4.3 The DfT have launched a Highway Maintenance Efficiency Programme that has been positive in that it has raised the profile and highlighted the importance of timely maintenance of the highway network. It initially focussed on a suitable approach to pothole repair, however this has now been developed to advise on efficient maintenance practises including emphasis on an asset management approach, lifecycle planning, buy in from Leadership, risk management, collaboration and benchmarking. 2.4.4 These processes are deemed as best Practice by the DfT and it is likely that future capital funding will be linked to our ability to demonstrate that we are adopting similar principles. To this end, we are heavily involved with the other West Yorkshire authorities in the various aspects of highway maintenance that are delivering improvements and efficiencies, these include standardisation of specifications, joint procurement exercises, sharing of resources etc. 3. WINTER MAINTENANCE BACKGROUND 3.1 The Winter Risk Period runs from the 1st October until 31st March with a low risk period from 1st October until mid November and mid March to the end of April with monitoring of weather information and data throughout the whole period. Bradford MDC operates one of the largest Winter Maintenance operations in the UK for a Metropolitan District Council. On a normal gritting run there are 26 routes driven over a total of approximately 720 miles, which accounts for 62% of the Highway Network. All the drivers are in-house, the largest percentages of drivers are from the Highway - 4 - Maintenance Section and also several drivers are from the Parks and Cleansing Division and supported by two contractors. Teams operate from four depots; Wakefield Road, Queensbury, Keighley and Ilkley. Winter Maintenance is an expensive operation and the Directorate of Regeneration and Culture will continue to investigate new methods /systems that may offer opportunities to reduce costs. 3.2 The geography and topography of the district makes the winter maintenance operation challenging. Bradford is situated in a very hilly and highly populated location. The range of heights above sea level goes from over 1100 feet above sea level at Queensbury traffic Lights to 325 feet at City Hall. Odsal Top lies at 696 ft, Buttershaw 867 ft, Woodside 760 ft, Wyke 600 ft, Clayton 700 ft, Allerton 750 ft, Oakworth 800 ft, Denholme 984 ft, Haworth 750 ft, Keighley 271 ft Cringles at Silsden 760 ft, Shipley is down at 250 ft with Baildon up to 525 ft and Baildon Moor 800ft, Ilkley Town Centre 311 ft and Ilkley Moor 820 ft. Back in Bradford, Dudley Hill 650 ft, Eccleshill 690 ft, Thornbury 560 ft. The Pennine side of Bradford which includes Oxenhope, Denholme and back to the Queensbury area are the most problematic in severe weather. 3.3 In the wake of the severe winters, between 2009 and 2010 the Government commissioned a report named the Quarmby Review. The key focus of the recommendation from the review was to develop:- Greater resilience in Salt stocks. In periods of extreme weather the relevant authorities (LHAs) are not constrained in its use of Rock Salt. Establishment of data Collection Systems. Improve co-ordination and dissemination of research and specifically a review of technical standard and guidance, which would lead to more effective and efficient use of salt. LHAs to review Winter Service Plan. Ensure links with wider resilience planning; consultation on improving information about these plans. Improve communications during periods of bad weather. Work with other Councils and the community to improve responses to snow events - 5 - 3.4 For the history of Gritting, see table below for the last 5 years. YEAR NO. OF GRITTING TOTAL OF SALT USED RUNS 2009- 2010 106 21,000 TONNES 2010-2011 85 13,300 TONNES 2011-2012 73 12,500 TONNES 2012-2013 117 22,000 TONNES 2013-2014 45 6,300 TONNES 2014-2015 68 14,800 TONNES 4.