Agenda item

Report by the Chair of the Review Board.

23.1     Councillor Hollidge, Chair of the Review Board, introduced the report. He outlined that the review had been established due to the condition of roads in the County and the impact this was having on vehicles, people, and the public realm. The review looked at the causes of potholes and the areas that the Council could influence by considering the existing policies, procedures, and funding. The Review Board had good conversations with Balfour Beatty Living Partnerships (BBLP) who are the new highways maintenance contractor. Councillor Hollidge thanked the Board members and officers their work on the review. He recommended the Committee endorse the report and make recommendations to Cabinet for comment and Full Council for approval.

23.2     The Committee discussed the report and thanked the Review Board for its work on the review. The Committee made a number of comments and raised some questions which are summarised below.

Improvements and monitoring

23.3     The Committee noted that there had been a noticeable improvement in pothole repairs since the start of the new contract with BBLP, but it was uncertain whether this level of performance would continue. It was commented that the Council is in the early days of the new contract and the Committee can monitor progress and performance of the contract through future monitoring reports and annual reports on performance.

Recommendation 13

23.4     The Committee discussed recommendation 13 and whether there should be a specific recommendation around improving information for councillors and members of the public on defect reporting, as it was not possible to see all reported defects at present. It was explained that work was already in progress to rectify this, which was why it was not included as specific recommendation in the report.

Drainage and footway maintenance

24.5     The Committee welcomed the recommendation on drainage and that the review had considered the issue of drainage as it is a contributing factor to the number of potholes. It was noted that the report highlights that more work is needed on the topics drainage and footway maintenance, and these topics should be considered as part of the future work programme of the Committee.

Utility company reinstatement works

23.6     The Committee members noted the recommendation regarding utility company reinstatement work and questioned whether this might increase costs for utility company customers and whether it would lead to improvements. The Assistant Director Operations commented that one of the biggest causes of potholes is utility company reinstatement work. The Council can only operate within the current legislation which allows utility companies to make a temporary repair and gives them six months to carry out a permanent repair. Officers support the recommendation for changes to the regulations which would lead to better quality reinstatement work.

Cluster of potholes and advisories

23.7     The Committee asked what percentage of advisory requests were approved within two to three working days and how long it takes for work to take place once approved. The Assistant Director Operations explained that advisories are approved by the Asset Team who check to see if there is any existing planned maintenance work for that area. If the advisory is approved, it will be added to the patching programme which received an extra £2.5 million of funding this year.  Unfortunately, a figure for the number of advisories that area approved within 2-3 days is not available. At the moment there is a backlog of work for the patching programme, and it can take up to six months for the work to be carried out once an advisory has been approved.

Cost of borrowing and capacity.

23.8     The Chair commented that everyone would like to see more money spent on potholes, but the cost of borrowing more money to fund pothole repairs was a constraint on what the Council could affordably do. There is also the issue of capacity to carry out additional work when additional funding becomes available.

23.9     The Committee RESOLVED to endorse the report of the Review Board, and to make recommendations to Cabinet for comment, and County Council for approval.