Earlier in the week, Cllr Geoff Brodie shared his views on the 25 year Highways PFI contract, over which he said he felt misled.
He stated it was time for Island Roads (the contractor) to be open and transparent over what he called the “unlikely delivery of the Core Investment Programme (CIP)”.
Ward: “Road resurfacing and renovation will not cease”
The Cabinet member for infrastructure and transport, Cllr Ian Ward, said:
“At March 2019 – six years into the 25 year highways PFI project – a total of 1,406 carriageway reconstruction/resurfacing schemes had been completed, representing 463 kilometres of highway. This is in addition to the many other aspects of the project, including the reconstruction/resurfacing of 236 kilometres of footway under 987 schemes.
“It is important to clarify that the road resurfacing and renovation programme will not cease once we reach the end of the core investment period in April 2020. This work will continue and will include many roads that are currently in a state of poor repair.
“We are currently in discussions with Island Roads over how things will continue to progress for the benefit of Island residents as we enter the next phases of the contract.
“The original project is funded by a fixed term 25 year grant of £477 million from the Department of Transport, and an index-linked contribution of £253 million from the council over the lifetime of the contract.
“Although the plan was for all our roads to be resurfaced, this changed when government funding for the highways PFI project was reduced by 30 per cent in 2010.”
How the assessment works
A spokesperson for the Isle of Wight council went on to explain,
After the core investment period, Island Roads is required to maintain the condition of the roads at (or above) the average level for the remainder of the 25 year duration. During this period, roads that have deteriorated to lower scores will be treated to bring them back up to standard and therefore ensure the overall average is maintained.
The condition level of the road is measured using a contract indicator known as the Wight Carriageway Condition Index (WCCI). The process involves an annual survey of the road network using a sophisticated vehicle equipped with multiple laser measuring devices to record the physical properties of the road. These are then put through a complex assessment and calculation process to calculate the WCCI for each road, and then the average scores are calculated for each district and road hierarchy across the Island. It is these averages that must comply with the targets in the contract.
A scanner survey was completed by Island Roads in July 2019 who are currently progressing the necessary reviews and calculations to determine the WCCI score which they expect to be complete later this year.
These statements appear to raise more questions which OnTheWight has posed to the council.
Image: © With kind permission of Allan Marsh
