Agenda item

Report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport.

27.1     The Contracts Manager introduced the report which provides an update on the work being undertaken to improve the effectiveness of the highway drainage network. The report describes three strands of work which targets £3 million of expenditure to improve the drainage infrastructure. Good progress is being made and the Team is building up momentum in dealing with these issues. The report provides details of completed and planned work, covering:

·          Blocked gulley outlets - Around 1,000 of the 2,700 blocked drains identified from routine gulley maintenance programme have been investigated and cleared or remedial action taken.

·          Flooding hot spots - All 270 of the original reported hotspots have been examined leading to the identification of 137 validated flooding hot spots requiring action. A number have been investigated and resolved. Of the remaining 100, 50 are under investigation.

·          Fence to fence design - Known drainage issues are being tackled as part of the surfacing programme (e.g. making sure the existing drainage infrastructure is working and re-profiling road surfacing to improve drainage).

·          Ditch and grip work - Work programmes have been started to re-instate ditches and grips where they need to be re-constructed, and routine maintenance programmes have been put in place. For the work on the ditch network, the county has been divided into four zones.

·          Improving knowledge – Work is continuing to digitise existing paper records and to resolve drainage network ownership issues. This is where problems relate to drainage infrastructure that is the responsibility of others to maintain.

27.2     The Committee asked a number of questions about the work that is being undertaken, which are summarised below. The Contracts Manager clarified that the drainage zones include the urban areas and divide the county into four zones: Zone 1 North West; Zone 2 North East; Zone 3 South West; Zones 4 South East.

Gulley Emptying

27.3     The Committee asked if there is a policy to remove parked cars to get access to blocked gullies. The Contracts Manager explained that in areas where there is a problem, residents are pre-notified of when gulley emptying work is going to take place by placing notices on lampposts. The contractor will return on a second date, but if it is still not possible to complete the work, the locations are recorded. They are then gathered up into a batch and a car lifter is employed to gain access. This is done approximately twice a year. Committee asked if it would be possible to include Councillors in the notification process.

Flooding Hotspots

27.4     The report provides details of the work undertaken on flooding hotspots and gives examples of the issues that are found as a result of investigations. These are typical of the types of work that are needed e.g. collapsed drains requiring excavation and replacement, root encroachment, lining, replacement to increase capacity etc.

Fence to fence approach

27.5     The Fence to Fence approach is tackling highway drainage first as part of projects to tackle other work (e.g. when surfacing is undertaken). The sort of work undertaken can be improving or changing drainage assets and profiling the carriageway. In rural areas the ditches and grips will be reinstated. In all cases priority will be given to those projects where there is a risk of flooding.

Improving our knowledge

27.6     The Committee asked how much of the drainage network remains to be mapped. The Contracts Manager responded that the Team prioritise mapping information that is obtained from investigations (e.g. for blocked gullies and flooding hotspots) and then the historic data, usually from old plans. The Team does not have a complete picture of whole County yet, but is continually improving the knowledge base.

Drainage network ownership issues

27.7     The Contracts Manager outlined that there are parts of the network where third parties, such as Southern Water or private landowners, deny owning the drainage infrastructure and therefore the responsibility for maintenance. Responsibility for these drains and their construction may have been transferred between responsible bodies over time. East Sussex County Council (ESCC) is often reliant on historic records to resolve these issues (e.g. St. Michaels Terrace in Lewes). Negotiating a solution to these issues can be complex, costly and difficult. Around 15%-20% of investigations have this level of complexity and take more time to resolve.

27.8     The Committee RESOLVED to note the progress made on the action plan and did not require a further update report. It may request Officers to provide further progress updates in the future.