To receive presentations covering topics such as strategic business plan priorities, maintenance, local transport plan, congestion and public transport.
Minutes:
The Area Board received a presentation from the following officers and councillors:
· Sam Howell (Director Highways and Transport),
· Jason Salter (Head of Service for Passenger Transport)
· Chris Clark (Head of Local Highways)
· Jack Francis (Highway Project Engineer)
· Cllr Caroline Thomas (Cabinet Member for Transport, Street Scene, and Flooding)
· Cllr Nic Puntis (Portfolio Holder for Flooding)
The presentation covered, but was not limited to, the following matters:
Introduction:
An overview of the Wiltshire transport context was provided, including how the highway network represented the Council’s largest and most valuable public asset with a replacement value of over £5billion including over 2,800 miles of road. There were 346 miles of A roads, 199 miles of B roads, 1,037 miles of C roads and 1,247 miles of unclassified road.
The relation of Highways and Transport to the Wiltshire Council Business Plan was outlined.
Statistics were provided about the number of assets that needed to be maintained, including 50,000 streetlights.
Investment in the Network:
· An overview of the funding available to Highways Maintenance was outlined, including that there was a Highways Maintenance fund of £21million, which was topped up by additional funds, such as a £3.6 million pothole fund.
· Other sources of funding top ups were covered, including additional investment from Wiltshire Council of £10 million for preventative maintenance and further Government funding to span a two-year period. By the end of financial year 2024/25 Wiltshire would have received an additional £5.228 million from the curtailment of the HS2 rail project.
· It was noted that as a local authority, Wiltshire was robust and had a preventative eye. The importance of prioritising issues was outlined.
The Local Transport Plan:
· The importance of having a Local Transport Plan was outlined, with it setting a framework for maintaining and improving transport in Wiltshire.
· The importance of the Local Transport Plan aligning with the Local Plan Review to help deliver Wiltshire Council’s Business Plan priorities was stated, with key themes identified including decarbonisation, freight, road safety and active travel.
· It was noted that there would be plenty of opportunities to be involved in the consultation for the Local Transport Plan.
Public Transport Review:
· An overview was provided about the public transport review, which would aim to shape the future bus policy as well as priorities for support.
· There had been over 1,000 responses to the consultation, which ended on 10 November 2023.
· The aim was for a new policy and network to be implemented from April 2024.
Highways Maintenance:
It was explained that the Council had three different approaches to maintenance:
o Reactive Maintenance - Responding to issues as they arise, such as repairing potholes or replacing damaged signs.
o Planned Maintenance - Scheduling regular maintenance tasks to prevent issues from arising in the first place or getting worse.
o Asset Maintenance - Taking a long-term view of highways maintenance and involves evaluating the condition of roads and infrastructure and prioritising maintenance tasks based on factors like condition, safety, cost, and rate of deterioration.
· An overview of benchmarking for Highways was provided following a 2022 South West Road condition scanner survey. Furthermore, it was noted that this data was used to prioritise investment.
· An explanation of why so many potholes have occurred was provided as well as detail regarding interim and permanent repairs. It was noted that there had been a particularly hot summer in 2022 followed by a very wet autumn. Interim repairs were required to make roads safe in the short term whilst programming in more extensive repairs.
· Greater automation was being bought in including a Bobcat machine to speed up road repairs by cutting out damaged sections of road.
· It was noted that officers had a defect dashboard which enables them to monitor real time data relating to reported and completed defects by area.
· Flood prevention work was outlined, with it noted that the gullies of A and B roads were emptied annually with 5,500 gullies classed as high risk.
Local Highway & Footway Improvement Group (LHFIG)
· The role and makeup of the Royal Wootton Bassett and Cricklade LHFIG was outlined as well as areas which they could fund.
· It was stated that currently the Royal Wootton Bassett and Cricklade LHFIG had 17 live projects with a budget of £91,431.
Parish Stewards:
· The role of Parish Stewards was outlined, with it noted that there were 18 Parish Stewards, one for each Area Board, who work with representatives in their parishes to ensure all work requests are clear and are logged for review before they start the work.
· Parish Stewards worked on small-scale discretionary highway works and also worked alongside a support gang on larger scale projects when demand and capacity allowed.
Public Transport
· It was explained that bus services fell into two categories, commercial and the supported network.
· Wiltshire Council invested well in public transport compared to the national average with £5.5 million spent on the supported network each year.
· There were plans to increase demand responsive transport. A trial in Pewsey Vale had been successful and had seen a 50 percent increase in users compared to a fixed timetabled service. The service had been funded using a £1.2 million grant from the Government’s Rural Mobility Fund. 85 percent of those using the service in Pewsey Vale had booked using an app. It was noted that there used to be a service called the Bassett Boomerang and that options for a replacement service could be considered.
· The local number 55 and 53 bus would get more evening and Sunday services.
Verge and Litter Clearance:
· It was outlined that grounds maintenance and street cleaning in the Royal Wootton Bassett boundary was the responsibility of Wiltshire Council.
· Litter collection of main routes and trunk roads had received an extra investment of £0.3m in 2023/24.
· Enforcement resources were being increased to tackle the issues of fly tipping and rural littering.
· The following Wiltshire Council campaigns were outlined 'We're Targeting Fly-Tippers' and 'Don’t Mess with Wiltshire'.
Lyneham Banks:
· The B4069 was closed following a landslide in February 2022.
· Once the ground had settled, ground investigations were carried out in late 2022 and early 2023.
· Multiple options for reinstating the road had been investigated and funding had been approved for the works.
· A tender had gone out for the work and a number of bids had been received from potential contractors.
· Details of how the project would be delivered would be shared in due course and the public would be kept updated online and through a quarterly newsletter.
Wiltshire Road Safety Partnership
The Area Board received a presentation from Perry Payne (Wiltshire Road Safety Partnership Manager). The presentation covered, but was not limited to, the following matters:
Partnership Work and Community Road Safety Team:
· The composition and role of Wiltshire and Swindon Road Safety Partnership working was outlined. The group was made up of a number of partners including, Wiltshire Council, Swindon Borough Council, the Ministry of Defence, the South West Ambulance Service and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC).
· The role of education was emphasised, including an awareness of the ‘Fatal 5’ causes of road traffic accidents.
· An overview of the work conducted by the Community Road Safety Team was provided.
Community Speed Watch in the Royal Wootton Bassett and Cricklade Area:
· The role of the Community Speed Watch Teams in the area was discussed, with data from July 2020 to February 2024 provided, including that a total of 324 speed watches had been carried out with 5,109 letters provided to offenders.
· The role of Traffic Surveys was discussed, 42 of which were undertaken in the Area Board’s area between October 2020 and January 2024. 12 areas were recognised as needing speed education.
Roads Policing Unit:
· The role of the Roads Policing Unit was discussed, with previous examples of their enforcement work cited. 2,071 tickets were issued to motorists for road related offences between October and December 2023.
Forensic Collision Investigation Unit (FCUI):
· The role of the FCUI was outlined with it noted that approximately 90 road traffic collision deployments (25-30 fatalities) were attended each year.
Community Speed Enforcement Officers:
· The role of Community Speed Enforcement Officers was outlined, with it noted that though these were not police officers they did have enforcement powers.
· County-wide statistics from January 2023 to March 2024 were provided, with 8,433 speed awareness courses issued, 1,114 fines and points issued and 101 people having to attend court for their speeding offences. In the Royal Wootton Bassett and Cricklade Area, 367 speed awareness courses had been issued with 34 fines and points. No individuals had been sent to court for speeding offences.