Archived decisions

Contact: Andrew Milne, tel 01264 368680 email: [email protected]

1. Summary

1.1 This report outlines progress with regard to the 2005/06 Highway Maintenance and Minor Capital Works Programmes and gives an update on the 2005/06 Highway Maintenance budget.

2. Background

2.1 As previously reported, the Highway Maintenance Programme is funded from both revenue and capital allocations.

2.2 The Revenue Maintenance Programme funds minor works such as pothole repairs, routine drainage work (including gully cleaning), signs and road markings, environmental maintenance of grass verges, trees and shrubs, weed control and highway emergencies. Minor bridge works and winter maintenance are also funded from revenue allocations. Budgets are set at a level that ensures the safety and serviceability of the highway network.

2.3 The Capital Maintenance Programme funds planned maintenance, including special maintenance, resurfacing and surface dressing, and also provides for essential repairs to the structure of the highway, eg programmed patching.

3. Highway Maintenance Budget and Programme 2005/06

3.1 The county-wide Highway Maintenance Budget for 2005/06, approved by the former Executive Member for Environment, is £49.418 million. This sum comprises £22.090 million revenue funding and £27.328 million funding from the capital programme. The capital funding provision includes an additional £3.678 million of capital funding specifically for highway maintenance works, the emphasis being on the maintenance of minor rural carriageways and urban footways. These budgets are spread across the 11 districts for local service delivery and also used to fund centrally managed programmes such as surface dressing, winter maintenance and performance elements of the highways Term Maintenance Contract.

Revenue Maintenance Budget and Programme

3.2 The total revised allocation for Test Valley for 2005/06 is £833,000. Progress throughout the year has been in line with the spend profile and it is expected that the programme will be completed within time and budget constraints. A budget monitoring statement is included within Appendix 1.

Capital Maintenance Budget and Programme

3.3 The total allocation for Test Valley for 2005/06 is £1,457,500, which includes £320,000 from the extra £3.678 million county-wide funding. The funding allocation for the capital maintenance `planned works' programme is based on the proven Highways Assessment of Maintenance Priorities (HAMP) rating system and has reflected the agreed intervention levels. The HAMP rating intervention level directs funding to those maintenance schemes displaying a higher maintenance need. Planned maintenance repairs undertaken through the capital maintenance programme include surface dressing, special maintenance and resurfacing schemes.

3.4 This year's schemes are progressing well with the expectation that the `planned' maintenance programme will be delivered within time and budget constraints. The largest schemes on this year's programme are the resurfacing of the A3090 Southampton Road in Romsey, haunch repairs to the C165 Martins Lane in Chilbolton, and replacement/refurbishment of slabbed footways in the Caerleon Estate, Andover. Progress on the remainder of this year's schemes is shown in Appendix 2.

3.5 Surface dressing is an extremely cost-effective way of prolonging the life of the carriageway, sealing any existing cracks and restoring skid resistance. The total county-wide programme for 2005/06 is £3.22 million (including approximately £125,000 safety engineering related surface dressing), which is managed centrally. All sites on this year's carriageway programme for the Test Valley area have now been successfully treated. This year's schemes are listed in Appendix 2.

4. Minor Capital Works

4.1 The Minor Capital Works Programme is funded from the capital allocation based on the Local Transport Plan submission to the Department for Transport. In the 2005/06 programme £200,000 was allocated county-wide, of which £18,000 was allocated for the Test Valley area. The schemes included in this year's programme are:

(i) Longparish Road, Longparish - £18,000 allocation for provision of new footpath to link main parking area with Village Hall and Longparish C of E Primary School. Scheme design is in progress; and

(ii) Winchester Road, Wherwell - extension of existing footway. Work is expected to have commenced prior to this meeting.

4.2 These schemes are scheduled to be completed by the end of the financial year. Any residual funds will be used to complete other minor capital improvements.

5. Impact Assessments

5.1 This report provides a position statement only, therefore an impact assessment in terms of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act has not been undertaken.

Recommendation

That this report be noted.

559/ADM

APPENDIX 1

Hampshire Highways West (Test Valley)