Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which local highways authorities are not members of maintenance alliances.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Department does not hold the information on which local highway authorities are members or not of maintenance alliances as it is for each highway authority to decide on whether they wish to become a member.
The Highways Maintenance Efficiency Programme does, however, hold information on each alliance that has been formed and this can be seen at the following weblink:
http://www.highwaysefficiency.org.uk/connect-and-share/connect/collaborative-alliances.html
In July 2012 the Programme published a toolkit which promotes the benefits of highway authorities working collaboratively with other authorities as part of an alliance. This toolkit can be found at the following weblink:
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which local highways authorities do not use the pothole repair methods recommended the highways maintenance efficiency programme report, Prevention and a Better Cure: Potholes Review, published in April 2012.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Department encourages local highway authorities to adopt the recommendations and approaches set out in the Pothole Review Report. Applications submitted by local highway authorities through the £200 million Pothole Fund announced in the Budget of March 2014 demonstrated that the majority of authorities had implemented recommendations in the Highways Maintenance Efficiency Programme report.
It is, however, for each local highway authority to decide on the methods to be applied to pothole repairs based upon their local knowledge and circumstances.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the National Audit Office report, maintaining strategic infrastructure: roads, what savings, under what headings, the Highways Agency has made in each of the last three financial years; and what savings are forecast for 2014-15.
Answered by John Hayes
The savings achieved in the past 3 years (2011/12 to 2013/14) total £136 million. The forecast for 2014/15 is £102 million (remains in line with the forecast in the June NAO report). This would total savings of £238 million for the 4 year SR10 period ending in 2014/15. Almost two thirds of the total savings will be achieved through maintenance contracts. See table below.
Highways Agency Savings | 11/12 Actual £m | 12/13 Actual £m | 13/14 Actual £m | 14/15 Actual £m | Total SR10 Act/Fcast £m |
Savings on Maintenance Contracts | (6) | 33 | 52 | 74 | 153 |
Other (Incl Increased use of in house-staff) | 19 | 19 | 19 | 28 | 85 |
Total Savings | 13 | 52 | 71 | 102 | 238 |
In reference to the National Audit Office (NAO) report, ‘maintaining infrastructure: roads’, the Highways Agency took a range of actions to achieve the savings and budget reductions set in the Spending Review 2010 (SR10). The main action relating to maintenance was; to renegotiate its existing and continuing maintenance contracts to give an affordable level of service; and it also developed a new type of contract in which it specified outcomes rather than prescribing maintenance activities. When maintenance contracts are renewed they are negotiated using the new type of contract. The majority of savings were anticipated to be achieved through the contract renegotiations.
Another area of savings identified in NAO report was the use of in-house staff to cover areas of work such as commercial and asset management.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the scope for the Highways Agency and local highways authorities to share departments, plant and staff and other resources used by their contractors; and what estimate he has made of the savings arising from such integration of resources.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
Whilst no assessment or estimate of savings has been made in respect of the Highways Agency and local highway authorities integrating services, the Highways Agency takes advantage of opportunities to share resources with local authorities where it is able to do so and it is appropriate.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what criteria were used in choosing the 10 schemes for work on the A47 which would be subject to further feasibility work by the Highways Agency.
Answered by John Hayes
The Department’s A47 Corridor feasibility study has reviewed evidence to identify the current and future problems and issues along the corridor. In considering potential investment proposals the study focused on the sections of the route that currently experience the most severe problems or where problems are predicted to be exacerbated due to planned development and growth.
A range of possible interventions to address the identified problems were assessed in terms of their deliverability and the extent to which they would meet a number of objectives for the corridor, including the extent to which they would support economic growth, help improve capacity, address resilience and safety, and the degree to which impacts on the surrounding natural environment and landscape could be minimised. The better performing interventions identified are to be further assessed in terms of affordability, deliverability and value for money.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which local highways authorities have not completed an asset management plan.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Department for Transport continues to work closely with the all parts of the sector to help spread best practice in highways asset management, including through the Highways Maintenance Efficiency. It is recommended that local highway authorities have an asset management strategy in place to ensure the efficient delivery of highway maintenance service for which they are responsible.
The development of highways asset management plans and strategies is entirely a matter for each local highway authority. As the National Audit Office report highlighted many authorities are currently at different stages of implementing such plans. The Department does not, therefore, hold comprehensive data on how many authorities have up to date asset management plans in place.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the National Audit Office report entitled, Maintaining strategic infrastructure roads, HC169, published on 6 June 2014, how many IT systems the Highways Agency and its contractors plan to use for its integrated asset management system by May 2015.
Answered by John Hayes
By May 2015 the Agency / contractors will be using 11 systems:
The Integrated Asset Management Information System (IAM IS) solution:
· five maintenance contractors will be live on the IAM IS Routine Maintenance / Customer Enquiry modules; and
· the IAM IS Pavements module (including network occupancy for booking road space for maintenance and the new network model) will have been rolled out to all maintenance contractors. This replaces the existing HA Pavements Management System and Schedule of Road Works.
Seven maintenance contractors will continue (until contract renewal) to use their own routine maintenance systems. It is expected that the final maintenance area will go-live in June 2016.
Three legacy databases for Structures (planned implementation July 2015), Drainage and Geotechnical (planned implementation April 2016).
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, by what date the Highways Agency plans to have a fully populated and integrated asset management system with 100 per cent coverage of its contractors.
Answered by John Hayes
The Highways Agency plans to have a fully populated and integrated asset management system in place by the end of 2017/18.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the National Audit Office report entitled, Maintaining strategic infrastructure roads, HC169, published on 6 June 2014, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on local highways of local authorities not implementing guidance from the highways of maintenance efficiency programme.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Department for Transport continues to work closely with the all parts of the sector to help spread best practice in highways asset management, including through the Highways Maintenance Efficiency. It is recommended that local highway authorities have an asset management strategy in place to ensure the efficient delivery of highway maintenance service for which they are responsible.
The development of highways asset management plans and strategies is entirely a matter for each local highway authority. As the National Audit Office report highlighted many authorities are currently at different stages of implementing such plans. The Department does not, therefore, hold comprehensive data on how many authorities have up to date asset management plans in place.
Asked by: Steve Barclay (Conservative - North East Cambridgeshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 24 February 2014, Official Report, column 237W, on large goods vehicles: speed limits, what progress has been made on the Government's further impact assessment of increasing the speed limit for hauliers from 40mph to 50mph.
Answered by Stephen Hammond
Ministers are giving careful consideration to any potential impacts of raising the speed limit for HGVs over 7.5t from 40mph to 50 mph on single carriageway roads and a further impact assessment has been undertaken as part of that process.
I want to make sure careful consideration is given to the evidence of all of the effects of raising the speed limit; on the economy, environment and road safety before a decision is made. I will consider the responses received and evidence presented before publishing a Response Report and impact assessment on our website.