Agenda item

The Divisional Highways Manager, South Kesteven and Sleaford (Brian Thompson), will be present to talk about roadworks, and how the county council communicates about them to the district council and the public.

Brian Thompson, Divisional Manager of Highways for LCC was present to talk about roadworks in South Kesteven, and how the county council advertises them.

The county council currently advertised road works in the following ways:-

• 2 x 6-monthly newsletters informing of all planned works, to all parish councils, county councillors and to the district council;
• Quarterly newsletters with a 3 month view on upcoming roadworks to all parish councils, county councillors and to the district council;
• Significant projects had press releases, but there was no guarantee that the press would print it, or that people buy that particular newspaper;
• Road signs i.e. “work starts here on 14^th December for 3 weeks”;
• For significant projects, the county council might pay Royal Mail to deliver a notice through residents doors with their mail;
• Sometimes contractors will knock on residents’ doors to inform them of work about to commence.

Mr Thompson advised the group that feedback had shown that the one element complained about the most with regard to roadworks, was the lack of notice given. He referred to the means of informing outlined above, and asked members for any ideas on how to improve.

• The Chairman suggested having artists impressions on road signs, depicting how the area will look after the works were completed. Mr Thompson informed the group that this was already done, but only for large scale projects, due to the costs involved. He stated that sometimes schools were even asked to be involved with this.
• The Vice-Chairman suggested that Mr Thompson’s department could set up a stall in the Isaac Newton Centre in Grantham on a Saturday morning, and in similar places in Bourne, Stamford and the Deepings, to inform people of upcoming roadworks. Mr Thompson said that this was a possibility.

The group then asked questions of Mr Thompson in other respects and had further discussions:-

• A member asked about A-boards, and the council’s stance on these on the pavements. Mr Thompson advised that the effort and cost of enforcing this issue was not justifiable compared to the small fine imposed on businesses by the courts. It was not value for money for the tax payer. Businesses putting A-boards on the pavements were asked to be respectful of pedestrians. It was suggested that powers for the enforcement of this issue could be delegated to the parish and town councils. Mr Thompson said he would certainly look into the feasibility of this suggestion.
• A member asked on the progress of the relief road. The first phase had had private funding confirmed. The county council were looking to impose a lorry ban on the centre of Grantham from day one of phase one of the relief road being open. A member expressed concerned about the number of large vehicles turning right at Gainsborough Corner onto Bridge End Road once phase one was complete, but was reassured that this would not be a big problem. Mr Thompson confirmed that there were still plans to create an extra lane at the bottom of Springfield Road near Pizza Hut for vehicles turning left onto London Road.
• The group discussed the feasibility of a park and ride in Grantham. Members were advised that places such as Lincoln and Peterborough, with larger shopping centres, were struggling to achieve the number of people needed to make the scheme viable, so Grantham was extremely unlikely to cope. The group were reminded that the bus system in Grantham was having a £1.2 million overhaul, plus funding for the next 4 years. It would be much easier for the public to get into town that way.
• A member asked about the provision of cycle lanes. Mr Thompson spoke about Community Travel Zones and the budget for cycle paths. The number of requests for cycle paths far outweighed the budget to provide them. He noted that one way to get around this problem was to legalise the use of bicycles on pavements in a certain area.