12.2 Maintaining the Highway Network

We will work to ensure that the highway network is maintained in a safe condition and to an appropriate standard for all users.

The County Council has a statutory duty to maintain and manage the highway network. A well-maintained network is a valuable asset to the community and is fundamental to achieving the strategic objectives of the County Council for people to travel easily and safely, feel safe, live healthy lives and enjoy a high quality environment. It is also essential to deliver the objectives of the Local Transport Plan and the shared priorities of national and Local Government.

The challenge for the highway maintenance service is to maintain and improve the highway condition. To develop new approaches to highway maintenance and deal with locality issues, the new highway maintenance establishment will include a Network Manager and three Area Managers.

However, despite all our efforts to work more efficiently and deliver better value for money, without a higher level of funding for road maintenance there is little prospect of reversing the deterioration in highway condition.

12.2.1 Improved Delivery of the Highway Maintenance Service

In conjunction with its District Council partners, the County Council will work to make the highway maintenance service more responsive to its customers, to devolve decision making and service delivery to a local level, and to improve the coordination of all street scene activities.

Improvements in the coordination and management of highway authority schemes, local authority projects, statutory undertakers works and private development works will create opportunities for added value, reduce disruption and improve the efficiency of highway maintenance activities.

We will develop the following initiatives;

• local area arrangements for highway maintenance and network management
• highways contact centre, one-stop shops and multi-service contact centres shared with District Council partners
• arrangements with Lancashire Local Committees and Area Members Boards to improve service coordination and develop a local input into decision making and policy formulation
• asset management plans, highway maintenance plans, policies and programmes within the context of the wider objectives for integrated transport and sustainable development
• countywide term maintenance contracts, works ordering systems and performance management to improve the efficiency and control of works procurement
• contributions from the private sector towards the future maintenance of highway infrastructure constructed as part of new developments.

12.2.2 Road Structural Maintenance

A well-maintained highway network contributes to the health and prosperity of a community. High standards of maintenance provide safer conditions for all road users, reducing road casualties amongst motorists and vulnerable road users. Economic benefits include reduced delays, reduced wear and tear of vehicles and reduced claims for damage or injury against the Highway Authority. In terms of accessibility, a well-maintained network ensures continued access to isolated communities, encourages cycling and walking and improves mobility for elderly and disabled people. In addition, it assists bus services to operate efficiently and on time.

In order to produce a balanced and appropriate programme of highway maintenance works, the County Council has invested in a Pavement Management System (PMS) which analyses data to determine the condition of the network.

A programme of surveys has been carried out on the various parts of the network using a wide variety of techniques - Deflectograph, SCRIM, Coarse Visual Inspection (CVI), Detailed Visual Inspection (DVI) and TRACS type surveys (TTS). In isolation, each survey gives information about a specific aspect of the network but, when combined in the PMS, they give a measurable condition of the network.

Improved knowledge of network inventory and condition will secure better utilisation of resources so as to improve the structure of the highway and the safety of the travelling public. Structural maintenance priorities and programmes will be subject to monitoring and review on an annual basis. 

New priority systems based on the SCANNER 'traffic light' principle in Scotland are being developed to target specific areas of the network, together with a rationalised hierarchy system to further the idea of acceptable/affordable standards for lower class highways.

Highway Maintenance Indicators

Figure 12.2.2a

Figure 12.2.2b

Figure 12.2.2c

The trend for the new indicators has not yet been established. The trend line for BVPI 096, established from deflectograph surveys, has therefore been used to give a projection of future road condition for both BVPI 223 and BVPI 224a. This indicates a steady deterioration of 2% per annum, assuming that funding is continued at the current rate. The index has been adjusted for the addition of former Trunk Roads, which are in better condition, to the County network. The trend line for BVPI 097b has been used for BVPI 224b and indicates a steady deterioration of 3% per annum, assuming that funding is continued at the current rate.

Despite all our efforts to work more efficiently and deliver better value for money, the condition of the busiest footways remains very poor. Specific funding is to be targeted at the worst condition footways in an attempt to reduce the proportion where structural maintenance should be considered. However, this will be at the expense of other parts of the highway network that have already been identified as deteriorating. Without a higher level of funding, sustained recovery of footway condition may not be possible. This will lead to higher proportions of the maintenance budget being required for urgent but inevitably less efficient repairs, rather than the preferred systematic renewal through planned structural maintenance of worn, potentially dangerous surfaces. Further, poor quality footway surfaces are cited as the cause of high numbers of successful claims for compensation as a consequence of damage or injury. The claims are a major drain on maintenance resources. Investment in footway surfaces to ensure they are kept in good condition clearly reduces the potential liability for trips and falls.

12.2.3 Highway Safety Inspections

Another measure of the condition of the highway asset, particularly footways, is the number of defects that are a hazard to highway users.The Highway Safety Inspection (HSI) system, introduced in 2002, enabled the County to develop a consistent approach to the identification, recording and repair of safety defects. The resultant safer highway environment contributes to the County Council's objectives.

The HSI system, in turn, forms the basis of a robust Section 58 (Highways Act 1980) defence against claims for compensation resulting from accidents or incidents on the highway network. A reduction in the proportion of the budget allocated to meet compensation claims will enable a consequential increase in the funding available for road structural maintenance.

12.2.4 Winter Maintenance

The County Council has a duty to ensure the safe passage of all road users during periods of snow and ice as far as is reasonably practicable. We will continue to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of our winter maintenance to maintain safety and accessibility and to meet the County Council's objectives of safe and easy travel.

We publicise our winter service through leaflets and maps and provide the latest information on winter weather to road users over the internet using the MARIO web site. We will also develop a one-stop-shop offering information for decision-makers and provide more information over the internet.

We have established a network of priority routes on which the county council, in partnership with the District councils, will carry out salting and gritting in advance of transient conditions such as early morning frost and ice. Following a review of gritting operations, we have introduced larger capacity gritters operating on fewer routes with a real-time tracking system to monitor service delivery. We will monitor salt consumption with enhanced salt stockpile management systems and cover all salt stockpiles to reduce wastage.

Accurate weather forecasts are required if we are to take effective precautionary measures. We have developed our weather forecasting using fully functional weather radar and automatic forecasts from all weather station sites, and we monitor the accuracy of the forecast provider. We will introduce route-based forecasting to make better use of resources.When snow is forecast, we will carry out additional gritting in advance of the fall. We will clear snow according to an established order of priority, beginning with our busiest roads and footways.

12.2.5 Environmental Management

In conjunction with the County Council's Environmental Management Strategy there is a constant review of practices to ensure that the most sustainable techniques are utilised.

The County Council will use recycling and low-cost surfacing materials where they will show whole-life cost benefits. The County Council's Estates Roads Specification requires that footways be constructed using recycled materials. This will be further developed through the Waste Management Strategy and will involve partnerships with customers, consumers and public and private bodies.

The County Council has trialled a number of sustainable drainage systems in conjunction with private developers and will use such systems where they are cost effective and where site circumstances are appropriate. We will introduce Sustainable Drainage Systems (SUDS) on the Heysham-M6 Link. Covering stockpiles of salt will reduce losses due to rain.

12.2.6 Holistic Approach

Over the last two years the County Council has been developing a policy of highway maintenance that benefits the community, all road users and the environment as well as offering better value. A Skidding Resistance Code of Practice has been produced for local roads where the speed limit is 40 mph or less. This provides enhanced protection for pedestrians at traffic controlled crossings but allows the use of local aggregates to be employed for all low speed roads.

A consequential review of surface texture led to the adoption of smaller aggregate and thinner surfacing layers. This allows overlays to be used where in the past more extensive works would have been necessary. As a result, maintenance work can now be undertaken more cheaply and more quickly. The work reduces the use of aggregate, produces less waste and also provides a surface that causes less traffic noise. The reduction in time spent on road works gives benefits to the community and to the Traffic Manager in helping to reduce congestion.

The holistic approach has been extended to embrace accident investigations, following which tactile highway surfacing designs have been introduced to warn drivers and riders of hazards on rural roads. We will take the advice set out in Living Places; Cleaner, Safer, Greener (ODPM), Street Scene (Audit Commission) and companion reports to bring improvements to public places. The RoWIP identifies the type of route and circumstances where enhanced maintenance and improvement should be prioritised because of the contribution these routes can make to the RoWIP.

A well-maintained footpath network is a valuable asset to the community and is fundamental to achieving the strategic objectives of the County Council for people to travel easily and safely, feel safe, live healthy lives and enjoy a high quality environment.

However despite all our efforts to work more efficiently and deliver better value for money, the condition of the busiest footways remains very poor. Specific funding is to be targeted at the worst condition footways (at the expense of other parts of the highway network that have already been identified as deteriorating) to attempt to reduce the proportion where structural maintenance should be considered. Without a higher level of funding, sustained recovery of footway condition may not be possible, leading to higher proportions of the maintenance budget required for urgent but inevitably less efficient repairs, rather than the preferred systematic renewal through planned structural maintenance of worn, potentially dangerous surfaces. In addition, high numbers of successful claims for compensation as a consequence of damage or injury where poor quality footway surfaces are cited as the cause are a major drain on maintenance resources. Investment in ensuring footway surfaces are kept in good condition clearly reduces the potential liability for trips and falls.

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