Issue - meetings

The Cabinet is requested to consider the agenda report and to make the following resolution that:

1)          An additional allocation of £30,000 wef. 2018-19 be approved, subject to the annual budget process, to support a new cleaning methodology for the A27 and other high risk A&B roads as set out in paragraphs 5.1 – 5.5 of the report.

2)          A spend of £45,000 from savings in the vehicle replacement programme be approved to purchase a dedicated and compliant traffic management vehicle.

RESOLVED

(1)  That an additional allocation of £30,000 be approved with effect from 2018-2019 subject to the annual budget process to support a new cleaning methodology for the A27 and other high risk A and B roads as set out in paras 5.1 to 5.5 of the agenda report.

(2)  That a spend of £45,000 be approved from savings in the vehicle replacement programme to purchase a dedicated and compliant traffic management vehicle.

The Cabinet received and considered the agenda report (copy attached to the official minutes).

The report was presented by Mr Barrow.

Mrs Huggett was in attendance for this item.

Mr Barrow explained that CDC had responsibility for litter clearance on roads and highways including the A27 and that in the past a contractor had been used on the A27 to litter pick six times a year, while CDC’s own team sometimes worked alongside the contractor to clean other main and minor roads. New regulations required CDC to consider the use of appropriate traffic management ie lights and cones when cleaning major roads. In response to the WISH guidance (para 3.4 of the agenda report), CCS staff had been trained to deploy traffic management on A and B roads, but not the A27.  Signs had been purchased and road/site specific risk assessments were being produced. In order to comply with traffic management legislation a dedicated vehicle with illuminated directional arrows was required. This would enable the newly formed CCS team to install its own traffic management solutions on most A and B roads. However, in some cases the only way to clean safely would necessitate lane closures or diversions to meet the safety regulations. CDC’s team was not qualified to work on the A27 and so in 2017 a specialised contractor had been engaged to work 20 night shifts to clean the A27 at a cost of £60,000. This was the entire year’s budget spent on just one deep clean.  An additional £30,000 was required to cover reactive cleans on the A27 or for specialist contractor input on a handful of particularly dangerous A and B roads. The CCS in-house team was equipped to deal with most of the remaining A and B roads in Chichester District but a dedicated traffic management vehicle was required for this at a cost of £45,000, which could be funded from savings in the approved vehicle replacement programme.

Mrs Huggett did not add to the presentation by Mr Barrow.

In reply to questions respectively from Mr L Macey (Chichester South ward member) who was observing the meeting and Mrs Taylor, Mr Barrow said that (a) CDC was seeking to improve co-operation with West Sussex County Council and Highways England as to the timing of clearance -operations to coincide with other highway works and (b) the legal action mentioned in para 7.4 of the agenda report could include fines.   

The Cabinet noted that in the second line of para 2.1 of the agenda report the first word ‘and’ should be deleted. 

Decision

The Cabinet voted unanimously on a show of hands in favour of making the resolutions set out below.

RESOLVED

(1)  That an additional allocation of £30,000 be approved with effect from 2018-2019 subject to the annual budget process to support a new cleaning methodology for the A27 and other high risk A and B roads as set out in paras 5.1 to 5.5 of the agenda report.

(2)  That a spend of £45,000 be  ...  view the full minutes text for item 407