Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor R G Davies, Executive Councillor for Highways, Transport and IT.

There were no declarations of interest at this point in the meeting.

RESOLVED

            That the minutes of the meeting held on 15 September 2014 be agreed     and signed by the Chairman as a correct record, subject to it being           clarified that a report on Network Rail's protocols for temporary closure          of level crossings be brought to a future meeting.

(To receive a presentation and verbal update from the Chief Operating Officer in relation to the new arrangements for Commissioning and Delivery)

The Committee received a presentation from Richard Wills, Executive Director for Environment and Economy in relation to the new arrangements for Commissioning and deliver which provided further information in relation to the following areas:

·         Senior Management Review – Drivers;

·         Commissioning Council Principles;

·         Commissioning philosophy;

·         Formal interface;

·         Informal interface;

·         Design principle;

·         Richard Wills – Role;

·         Not a "directorate" – 4 operating groups;

·         Executive Director for Environment and Economy – Organisation of Senior Managers;

·         Organisation of Senior Managers for Highways and IT;

·         3 Commissioning Strategies;

·         Sustaining and developing prosperity through infrastructure (Various priorities|);

·         Sustaining and developing prosperity through infrastructure;

·         Commissioning;

·         Delivery – Highways;

·         Committee's Role;

·         Key contacts for Highways;

·         Conclusions;

·         ……and reality;

Members of the Committee were provided with the opportunity to ask questions to the officers present in relation to the information contained within the report, and some of the points raised during discussion included the following:

·         When referring to commissioning, it was important to note that this did not automatically mean outsourcing services.  The authority was very much pro 'in house' services, but it was important to act in a way that provided the best value.  One of the most effective delivery methods in Lincolnshire for Highways services has been through external contractors.  A lot of work on benchmarking had been carried out to ensure that this remained true.  It was also noted that other authorities, such as Leicestershire had been looking at the model used by Lincolnshire;

·         The budget for footpaths and roads was currently up for discussion, and the Executive Councillor was working very hard to retain the budget, and was even asking for additional money for the capital budget and the maintenance budget;

·         There was a need to try and maximise the amount of capital spending against match funding;

·         70% of Highways Officers' time was spent dealing with the operation of the roads as a network, and only 30% of the time maintaining it as an asset;

·          

·         One issue in terms of the reduction in staff numbers was resilience, and there would be a need for senior management to make a decision on whether to employ fewer specialists and more generalists;

·         In the event of someone with specialist knowledge being off sick, there was the potential that there could not be cover in the short term, and any issues would need to be dealt with from existing resources;

·         All contracts were set up so work was done correctly the first time, in the event that a material failed, but not substantially, then a reduction in costs would be agreed.  If there was a major fail, then the contractors were required to correct it at their own expense.  All sub-contractors were approved by the authority after checking their technical ability and financial stability;

·         There were concerns regarding what the structure below the senior managers would look like.  Members were advised that the Chief Operating Officer had met with the highways managers to discuss the changes to the divisions.  It was reported that a degree of consistency would be  ...  view the full minutes text for item 30.

The Executive Support Councillor for Highways, Transport and IT advised that he had no announcements to make at this time.

The Infrastructure Commissioner provided the Committee with updates on major highways schemes as follows:

Lincoln East – West Link - the contract had now been let, and pre-start meetings had been held and work was due to start on site on 3 November 2014.

Canwick Hill – the first tender was received on 24 October 2014, and it was hoped that a successful tender would be found from this process.

Lincoln Eastern Bypass – planning permission for a different Non-Motorised User (NMU) bridge had been received and the CPO and side roads orders had been republished.  A six week consultation had now started.  It had been suggested that previous objections and work carried out in relation to them on the previous public inquiry would be taken into account and considered dealt with.  Concerns were expressed regarding the risk that, following the delays with this project, after the General Election in May 2015, the £50m promised from central government may not be available.  It was also reported that there could be a planning application submitted for 400-500 houses on the land between the bypass and Cherry Willingham.  It was suggested that it could be helpful for members if the County Commissioner for Economy and Place circulated a briefing note which explained some of the constraints and types of risk.

It was confirmed that the footbridge over the level crossing at the High Street in Lincoln would still be going ahead.

(To receive a report from the Infrastructure Commissioner which provides the Committee with an update on progress with the Lincolnshire Highways Alliance)

Consideration was given to a report which provided an update on progress with the Lincolnshire Highways Alliance, an alliance between the County Council, Imtech, Mouchel and Kier.  This Alliance delivered the majority of highway services through the Traffic Signals Term Contract, the professional Services Contract and the Highway Works Term Contract.

It was reported that the Lincolnshire Highway Alliance was now in the fifth year of a potential contractual duration of 10 years.  Independent comparison of services confirmed that the Alliance continued to deliver class leading, cost effective, high quality highway services with improvement areas identified and work underway to deliver that further efficiency and improvement.

The Infrastructure Commissioner guided the Committee through the report and Members were provided with the opportunity to ask questions to the officers present in relation to the information contained within the report, and during consideration of the report, the following points were raised:

·         It was evident in Boston, that the amount of positive publicity had deteriorated over the quarter;

·         In terms of the professional services contract, it had reached a stage where it would be difficult to raise the performance significantly;

·         It was queried whether the authority did any 'spot tendering' to check whether the contracts were providing value for money when compared with the current market.  Members were advised that there were a number of framework contracts in place, but spot tendering would not be carried out for small works;

·         The authority carried out a range of benchmarking activities against other midlands authorities, and so there was confidence that the Alliance was still providing value for money;

·         Concerns had been raised previously regarding the quality of the weed control works, but it was thought that this year it had been slightly better;

·         It was confirmed that local councils were able to take on some activities such as weed control;

·         Complaints were being received regarding the surface dressing treatments which were being used, and it was queried whether it was the right specification as in some areas had increased the noise of the road.  Members were advised that the material being used was of the correct technical specification and that there is currently no noise limit requirement.  Noise level testing was being undertaken to define the current position and to consider a way forward.

RESOLVED

            That comments made in relation to the report be noted.

(To receive a report from the Infrastructure Commissioner which invites the Committee to consider the Spalding Transport Strategy 2014 – 2036 report, which is due to be considered by the Executive Councillor for Highways, Transport and IT)

Consideration was given to a report which invited the Committee to consider the Spalding Transport Strategy 2014 – 2026 which was due to be considered by the Executive Councillor for Highways, Transport and IT.

The Committee was guided through the report, and the process, consultation, content, delivery and monitoring arrangements were explained.  Members were provided with the opportunity to ask questions to the officers present and some of the points raised during discussion included the following:

·         It was commented that this was the right time to be launching this Strategy and it would be beneficial to tie it in with the South east Lincolnshire Local Plan;

·         It was queried whether this would be a suitable time to consider reviewing the Boston Transport Plan;

·         Councillor Mrs Newton advised that she had attended the Spalding Town Forum meeting which had been held the previous week, and some of the main issues which had arisen was the wish to retain the Into Town bus service as part of the Strategy as it was well used, and would be important to fulfil the need to get more vehicles off the roads.  Ideally residents would like to see another vehicle added to the service to increase frequency of journeys and encourage more people to use it.  It was also thought that there was a need for Network Rail to reinstate the footbridge at Winsover Road as a priority to improve connectivity in the town and to encourage more people to walk or cycle;

·         There was support for the suggestion of removing some of the town centre signal installations in order to improve traffic flow in the town;

·         In relation to the additional vehicle for the Into Town bus service, it was noted that where new housing development was planned, this could create opportunities for more frequent bus services.  However, it was noted that often it was more effective to have the services in place before people moved into the houses, as this encourages them to form new transport habits more easily;

·         It was suggested that the wording regarding the potential for developer contribution to local bus services should be strengthened;

·         As the Boston Relief Road and Grantham Relief Road were being paid for through CIL, would it be possible for development to the south east quadrant of grater Lincoln to be funded in the same way?

·         The issues being faced by Spalding were similar to those in Sleaford;

·         In order to have a sustainable transport system there would be a need for some degree of traffic restraint within the town centre;

·         The aim of the Transport Strategy was to create a balance between providing safe facilities for pedestrians and cyclists and improving traffic flow;

·         The biggest barrier to traffic flow on the A151 was the impact of the level crossings;

·         There was a need to be explicit regarding what the impacts on the different types of road users would be;

·         Councillor R G Fairman, the County Councillor for Spalding East and Moulton was permitted to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 33.

(To receive a report from the Scrutiny Officer, which provides the Committee with an opportunity to consider its work programme for the coming year)

The Committee received a report which enabled it to consider and comment on the content of its work programme for the coming year.

The Scrutiny Officer reported that the only change was the addition of the item in relation to the temporary closure of level crossings by Network Rail.

It was also suggested that a standing item be added to the agenda to provide the Committee with an update on progress of the major highways schemes.  It was agreed that this would be a verbal update.

RESOLVED

1.    That the work programme be noted;

2.    That a verbal update on the major highways schemes be added to future agendas.