Earlier in the week, prompted by a tweet from Islander Doug Alldred, OnTheWight got in touch with the council and Island Roads over the apparent disappearance of Catseyes from resurfaced roads.
Doug asked if anyone could give him a good reason why Island Roads weren’t fitting Catseyes on their ‘new’ roads. He added,
“Far as I can see they haven’t fitted any anywhere. Most noticeably Blackgang Hill, Military Road, Shorwell Shute.”
Where have they gone?
OnTheWight got in touch with the council and Island Roads to find out what was happening.
Gavin Foster got back to us on behalf of Island Roads, saying,
“The presumption is that road studs (cats eyes) will routinely be replaced at locations where they currently exist, and many have already been replaced following resurfacing works.
“The PFI contract requires Island Roads to meet specific standards set by the Isle of Wight Council.
“In accordance with that and in line with good industry practice, it is possible that cats eyes may not be replaced in some locations where they are deemed to be unnecessary.
“However, removal of road studs would only take place with the Isle of Wight Council’s approval. To date, no approvals for the permanent removal of road studs have been sought.”
Unclear
Unfortunately it was worded in such a way that it didn’t provide the kind of clear answer Islanders would be looking for.
So, have they (Island Roads) not been replacing Catseyes without seeking permission from the council? It’s not clear how to read Gavin’s response.
We’ve asked Gavin for a list of all roads where Catseyes (or road studs as he prefers to call them) have been removed and not replaced. We’ll let you know once we receive it.
Lack of response from council
We had asked the council the same questions as Island Roads, but instead of giving a response on behalf of the council, they sent us nothing of value.
So, we put some more questions to them – such as ‘In the very expensive pre-PFI survey of the Island’s roads, where the Catseyes noted?’ We hope this time we’ll get a proper response.
OnTheWight will continue to pursue this, as Catseyes are vital for safety on many Island Roads.
Have you noticed them going missing too?
Doug’s been doing a lot of driving of late and has noticed many areas where the Catseyes have just vanished.
Have you been having the same experience? Where have you been noticing it?
Article edit: All references to Cat’s Eyes replaced with correct name, Catseyes
Image: jamescheuk under CC BY 2.0
