Agenda item

[To consider a briefing note on Potholes within Wolverhampton]. 

John Roseblade, Head of City Transport, gave a short PowerPoint presentation on the work done to maintain the highway network and the treatment of potholes and defects. The Head of City Transport advised the panel that the Council maintains highway network of 450 miles and referred to findings of an independent annual survey. The survey reported that to bring roads up to a ‘reasonable’ standard would take 10 years and cost £9.8 billion. Based on this estimate this would require a budget of £24 million - the current annual resurfacing budget is approximately £3 million.  The Head of City Transport advised that despite the budget shortfall the overall condition of the road network is considered to be good compared to other local authorities in the region. The Council benefited from extra Government funding awarded a few years ago to do large scale road maintenance work, which has helped.

The Head of City Transport explained the current inspection regime and the criteria used to assess the degree of risk that a road defect represents, and the different repair methods used. The Head of City Transport explained the statutory responsibilities of the Council to maintain the highway. The Head of City Transport explained that a new method of repairing road defects is being trialled and early results are very promising when doing temporary or larger scale maintenance work. The method provides a rapid pothole repair service which has greatly improved response times and reduced disruption to traffic due to the speed it can be done at much lower cost.

The panel queried current research into new methods of highway maintenance and repair. The Head of City Highway advised that methods using recycled rubber and plastic are being tested to see if they can cope – a particular challenge is how such material copes with periods of prolonged rain which damages the surface. The Council is constantly looking for improve methods for repairing highways and also seeking funding opportunities.

The panel queried the work done to respond to resident complaints about the lack of co-ordination between different organisations which lead to recently resurfaced highways being damaged to enable other maintenance work to be done. The Head of City Transport explained the work done to share details of planned maintenance with other utility organisations. The Council can put a legal restriction to prevent road maintenance work being done for up to five years; unless there an emergency gas or water repairs required. The aim is to protect the condition of the road.

Steve Evans, Cabinet Member for City Environment, commented on the issues caused when planned maintenance work overruns and the benefits of using the velocity patchwork method. The panel were shown a video clip of the method being used and the speed at which it can repair damaged highways. The system can complete 100s of road repairs within a short time which reduces traffic disruption.

The panel discussed the use of alternative materials to repair the highway. The Head of City Transport advised the panel that there is a focus on finding low energy alternative materials which will reduce the carbon footprint.

Further plans will be included in the service response to Council’s response to the climate change emergency declaration.

The panel discussed the issue about how to communicate to the public when a repair to the highway is intended to be a temporary fix.

The panel queried the number of claims against the Council for compensation as a result of personal injury, loss and damage. The Head of City Transport responded that the Council had received 206 claims in total to date for compensation during 2018/19. The authority had accepted 20 claims for damage due to potholes and the total amount paid was £5,000. This performance compares well with other neighbouring authorities. The Council had settled 8 separate claims for personal injury totalling £38,000.

Resolved:

            The panel agreed to note the report.