Supplementary Pack 1 - Mid Argyll, Kintyre and the Islands Area Committee 280224
Argyll and Bute Council · 28 February 2024
Back to Mid Argyll, Kintyre & the Islands Area Committee — 28 February 2024 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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Argyll and Bute Council Comhairle Earra-Ghàidheal Agus Bhòid Executive Director: Douglas Hendry Kilmory, Lochgilphead, PA31 8RT Tel: 01546 602127 Fax: 01546 604435 DX 599700 LOCHGILPHEAD 23 February 2024 SUPPLEMENTARY PACK 1 MID ARGYLL, KINTYRE & THE ISLANDS AREA COMMITTEE - ON A HYBRID BASIS BY MICROSOFT TEAMS AND IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBERS, KILMORY, LOCHGILPHEAD on WEDNESDAY, 28 FEBRUARY 2024 at 10:30 AM I enclose herewith item 15 (ROADS AND INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICES UPDATE) and item 16 (ROADS CAPITAL RECONSTRUCTION PROGRAMME 2024/25) which were marked to follow on the Agenda for the above meeting. Douglas Hendry Executive Director ITEMS TO FOLLOW 15. ROADS AND INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICES UPDATE (Pages 3 - 6) Report by Executive Director with responsibility for Roads and Infrastructure Services 16. ROADS CAPITAL RECONSTRUCTION PROGRAMME 2024/25 (Pages 7 - 12) Report by Executive Director with responsibility for Roads and Infrastructure Services Mid Argyll, Kintyre & the Islands Area Committee Councillor John Armour Councillor Jan Brown Councillor Garret Corner (Chair) Councillor Robin Currie (Vice-Chair) Councillor Jennifer Kelly Councillor Tommy MacPherson Councillor Dougie McFadzean Councillor Dougie Philand Councillor Alastair Redman Shona Barton, Governance Manager Contact: Iona Campbell, Senior Committee Assistant - 01436 658 801 Public Document Pack
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ARGYLL AND BUTE COUNCIL MID ARGYLL, KINTYRE AND THE ISLANDS AREA COMMITTEE ROADS AND INFRASTRUCTURE 28 FEBRUARY 2024 SERVICES ROADS AND INFRASTRUCTURE SERVICES UPDATE 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 A Roads and Infrastructure standing report was a fixture on Area Committee agendas throughout the life of the last Council. In the first two rounds of Area Committee meetings in the new Council feedback was sought on the value of these updates, and their format and frequency. Generally Members felt having a standard item was beneficial and it was acknowledged that the Roads and Infrastructure weekly briefings issued to all members each Friday afternoon provide for the main sources of live information on current activities. On top of these briefings there is a bank of resources on the new Member Zone system which include the weekly briefings, subject specific briefings, ad hoc short briefings on issues, relevant previous committee reports, operational service procedures, legislation and Council policies. 1.2 In the last Council the purpose of these reports was to provide an update on service activities but since weekly briefings these have largely superseded the original stated purpose of these reports. 1.3 On the basis of the above this new format has been agreed through the December 2022 round of area committees for this standing item. This format removes duplication for Officers and rather links to existing published information, with additional updates only in the body of the reports if these are specifically requested/noted from previous meetings. The report remains as a standing item and continues to provide the opportunity for Officer engagement at the committee meetings. 2.0 RECOMMENDATIONS It is recommended that the Area Committee: 2.1 Note and consider the contents of this report. 3.0 DETAIL 3.1 Roads and Infrastructure Services provides Members with weekly briefings on topical service activities which are all available here. Page 3 Agenda Item 15
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3.2 As part of the resources on the new Member Zone system there are various key documents available in an online library here. 3.3 There are also additional online resources covering the streetlighting, footway, surface dressing and roads reconstruction programmes available on the website here. Cloanaig landslip 3.4 Officers are continuing to work through the necessary consents process which included liaison with SEPA regarding the disposal of material arising from the excavations. We are also progressing with procuring a contractor through a direct route. Should the consents process conclude positively we are working towards a start on site in the Spring 4.0 CONCLUSION 4.1 This report provides links to existing published information on service activities and provides for the opportunity for Officer attendance and engagement at committee meetings. 5.0 IMPLICATIONS 5.1 Policy – Roads and Infrastructure work to a number of policies across the range of service areas. 5.2 Financial – revenue and capital budgets are in place to deliver projects and cyclic work. 5.3 Legal – Roads and Infrastructure Services work to a number of different pieces of legislation such as the Roads Scotland Act 194 and the Environmental Protection Act 1990. 5.4 HR – none known. 5.5 Fairer Scotland Duty: 5.5.1 Equalities - protected characteristics – where appropriate EqSEIAs will be carried out to identify any implications. 5.5.2 Socio-economic Duty – where appropriate EqSEIAs will be carried out to identify any implications. 5.5.3 Islands – where appropriate Island impacts assessments will be carried out to identify any implications. Page 4
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5.6. Climate Change – due regard will be given to climate change with a view to minimising any climate change impact and these will be considered as and when they arise. 5.7 Risk – risk managed through toolbox talks, safety briefings and where appropriate risk registers – all of the above are monitored through the RIS leadership and management teams. 5.8 Customer Service – none known. 5.9 The Rights of the Child (UNCRC) – none known Executive Director with responsibility for Roads and Infrastructure Services, Kirsty Flanagan Policy Lead for Roads and Transport, Councillor Andrew Kain January 2024 For further information contact: Jim Smith, Head of Roads and Infrastructure Services Mark Calder, Project Manager Page 5
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ARGYLL AND BUTE COUNCIL MAKI AREA COMMITTEE ROADS AND INFRASTRUCTURE 28 FEBRUARY 2024 SERVICES ROADS CAPITAL RECONSTRUCTION PROGRAMME 2024/25 1.0 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1.1 Attached to this report is a draft programme for roads reconstruction schemes for 2024/25 in the Mid Argyll, Kintyre and Islands area. This programme has been designed using the current Road Condition Index (RCI) which is produced by the national road condition survey data. In addition to the RCI data, information such as road traffic collisions, known development, activities such as timber harvesting and skid condition (of the carriageways surface) which is measured by a separate survey are also considered together with information brought forward from Elected Members during agreed Area Business Days with officers from Roads and Infrastructure Service. This information is considered at officer level when appropriate engineering judgement is also applied to ensure that maximum benefit can be derived from the available investment. 1.2 The Roads Reconstruction Programme has been structured in line with the Roads Asset Management and Maintenance Strategy. The focus has been to arrest the rate of decline and provide an overall improvement in condition as has been demonstrated in the Annual Status and Options Report. In previous years this has been achieved through the delivery of a mix of carriageway resurfacing, edge strengthening, patching/surface dressing and in-situ road surface recycling. These treatments have been designed to seal the road to stop the ingress of water, improve ride quality and reduce the number of reactive repairs. This has resulted in an overall improvement in road conditions. Without this investment and works there would have been a significant deterioration in condition and a detriment to the travelling public, economic opportunity and tourism. 1.3 Following the Council’s Budget Meeting, which took place on 22nd February 2024, £8M has been confirmed for the Capital Roads Reconstruction budget. 1.4 As per previous years any post winter deterioration may result in some adjustment to the programme to ensure that the best rates of return in terms of whole life costs can be achieved. Page 7 Agenda Item 16
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2.0 RECOMMENDATION 2.1 It is recommended that the Mid Argyll, Kintyre and Islands Area Committee: • Provide comments on the draft programme that is contained in Appendix 1 of this report. • Note that the programme will go forward to the Environment, Development and Infrastructure Committee on 21 March 2024 for endorsement. 3.0 DETAIL 3.1 The focus of the roads reconstruction programme has been to recover the network through the delivery of a mix of carriageway resurfacing schemes, patching/surface dressing and in-situ road surface recycling, which follow the principles set out within the Roads Asset Management Plan. 3.2 This Council has approximately £122M of backlog maintenance (based on figures produced by SCOTS) across the road network. This means that over £122M would need to be invested to bring the road network up to an ‘A1’ standard. Most councils are in a very similar position. During these challenging financial times, it is very unlikely we will benefit from the level of investment required to bring the road network up to an ‘A1’ condition. 3.3 As in previous years, the proposed schemes have been selected using the Councils Roads Asset database WDM Payment Management System (PMS) using the information collected from the SCANNER Survey carried out in summer months, other information mentioned above and engineering judgement. The SCANNER surveys are carried out by a single contract for all 32 councils in Argyll and Bute. Unfortunately, this year a small number of councils, including Argyll and Bute, have not received a full network survey. In Argyll and Bute, the majority of the islands have not been surveyed and this means that previous year’s data has been used and qualified from safety inspection intelligence. Whilst this is not ideal, Members should note that full network surveys are not carried out on an annual basis, the frequency of surveys is detailed below: 100% of the A Class roads are surveyed (in one direction) 50% of the B Class roads 25% of the C Class roads 10% of the Unclassified road network 3.4 The survey data will categorise roads from red to green, with red being in worst condition and green not requiring attention. In-line with industry best practice, investment is not necessarily concentrated on all the red roads but instead has been aligned to focus on a combination of red and amber roads to arrest deterioration. This effectively provides a stitch in time approach and ensures that we get the best rate of return from the investment available. Red roads are roads requiring attention currently, amber roads are roads which will require attention in the not too distant future and green roads are roads which require no attention. By progressing schemes which will provide the best rate of return, taking Page 8
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consideration of the survey results and associated data, the Council is able to deliver a programme of schemes which maximises the benefits to the travelling public from the available investment. There is also a consideration applied that reflects route classification and hierarchy together with the Road Condition Index. 3.5 Surface dressing schemes are selected on the basis that, either the skid resistance of the road surface is poor, or the road surface requires sealing before it fails. Surface dressing can range from a standard binder with 6mm chippings through to polymer modified binders with more than one layer of chippings. 3.6 Following a presentation to Members in January 2023 and reports to Environment, Development and Infrastructure Committee in June 2023, officers carried out Members Business Days in October/November 2023 to enable an opportunity for Members to bring forward priorities for consideration in the 2024/25 Capital Roads Programme. 3.7 As in previous years, the roads reconstruction programme will be delivered by a mixed economy model with the Councils in-house team delivering carriageway reconstruction and patching works. The surface dressing element of the programme will be delivered by an external contractor. This enables the maximum surface area to be covered which will help to seal carriageway cracks, prevent the ingress of water and reduce the amount of reactive maintenance for potholes. 3.8 The table below details the total of the 2024/25 allocation following the 2023 February Budget meeting. The capital budget allocation for 2024/25 has been split in line with the pre-agreed percentage formula which is based on road area and population. There are a number of schemes being carried forward for various reasons including ferry availability to transport materials. These have been shown at the bottom of the area programmes and are in addition to the £8M funding for 2024-25. Area Area Total OLI (35%) £2,800,000 MAKI (31%) £2,480,000 B&C (20%) £1,600,000 H&L (14%) £1,120.000 Total £8,000,000 3.9 In 2023/24 there was also a grant from the Strategic Timber Transport Scheme (STTS) totaling £387k. This grant was significantly less than in previous years and officers expect this to continue in the current frugal economic climate. This funding was used to match fund existing schemes on the council network where timber extraction was programmed to be carried out. It is officers’ intention to make Page 9
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further bids to the STTS for 2024/25 which, if successful, will provide additional investment for the road network. 3.10 The capital programme presented is based on carriageway condition late autumn/early winter. With the effect of winter this programme may need to be adjusted to ensure that any investment takes into consideration any winter deterioration. 3.11 The programme for each of the administrative areas will be forwarded to Area Committee Members and updates to Area Committees as the programme progresses. The programme will also be available on the council website with key scheme status and dates. 4.0 CONCLUSION 4.1 This report provides details of the proposed roads reconstruction programme for 2024/25 and seeks comments from Elected Members on the draft programme. 5.0 IMPLICATIONS 5.1 Policy - works assessed and carried out under the current Roads Asset Management Plan. 5.2 Financial - programme will be based on capital allocation for year 2024/25. 5.3 Legal – None known. 5.4 HR - reconstruction works delivered by a combination of in-house roads operations team and sub-contractors. 5.5 Fairer Scotland Duty: None known. 5.5.1 Equalities - protected characteristics – None known. 5.5.2 Socio-economic Duty – None known. 5.5.3 Islands – None known. 5.6 Climate Change – due regard will be given to climate change with a view to minimising any climate change impact and these will be considered as and when they arise. 5.7 Risk - completed works will reduce requirement to repair roads and will arrest the carriageway/footway deterioration. 5.8 Customer Service - overall improvement in road surfaces and the quality of driven journeys. Page 10
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5.9 The Rights of the Child (UNCRC) – the investment to improve our road network will contribute to a safer environment for young people to thrive in. Executive Director with responsibility for Roads and Infrastructure: Kirsty Flanagan Policy Lead for Roads and Transportation: Councillor Andrew Kain February 2024 For further information contact: Jim Smith, Head of Roads and Infrastructure Service jim.smith@argyll-bute.gov.uk APPENDICES Appendix 1 – MAKI Proposed Roads Reconstruction Programme 2024/25 Page 11
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APPENDIX 1 – MAKI PROPOSED ROADS RECONSTRUCTION PROGRAMME 2024/25 MID ARGYLL, KINTYRE AND THE ISLANDS SHARE OF £8M Budget 2,480,000.00£ 2024/25 draft schemes based on the historic % split of the current £8M budget MID ARGYLL 33% Scheme Location, Road number/Name Works Type Estimated Cost A819 Electric Cottage PH 4 Widening/Surfacing £ 200,000.00 U47 Crinan Loop inc Drainage improvements C39 Overlay £ 90,000.00 B8002 Ardfern to Craignish ( 4 sites = 1815 Lin.m) Overlay £ 162,000.00 UC01 - Brodie Cres - Lochgilphead Inlay £ 20,000.00 UC12 - Union St - Lochgilphead Inlay £ 99,733.33 C30 Ford - Kilmaha inc Balure Spur Pre-SD 2024 30,000.00£ C30 Ford - Kilmaha inc Balure Spur Laying 2024 150,000.00£ 2025 Pre-SD U18 Drimvore - Crinan ferry - Moss area Pre-SD 2025 66,666.67£ District Total 818,400.00£ KINTYRE 33% Scheme Location, Road number/Name Works Type Estimated Cost Meadows Ave West side Inlay £ 46,204.59 u15 Crosshill Ave @ Range Rd junction Inlay £ 87,163.56 Davaar Ave - Albyne Ave to Calton hill Inlay £ 34,161.07 UC09 Calton Ave - Albyne Ave to Davaar Ave Inlay £ 35,393.69 B842 Campbeltown Esplanade Inlay £ 130,000.00 B842 - Main St to New Quay St Inlay £ 41,127.08 John St- whole length Inlay £ 25,442.96 Shore St - Main St to New Quay St Inlay £ 69,108.60 Stewart Rd - John St to New Quay St Inlay £ 36,451.80 C22 Gigha Ardminish Overlay £ 35,460.94 Tomaig road - Campbeltown Inlay £ 55,515.05 2024 Pre -SD U17 Pre-SD 2024 £ 50,000.00 2024 SD - U17 A83 - Upperballywilline Laying 2024 £ 105,704.00 2025 Pre-SD U17 Gobbagrennan & U18 Tangy Pre-SD 2025 £ 66,666.67 District Total 818,400.00£ ISLANDS 34% Scheme Location, Road number/Name Works Type Estimated Cost A846 Steam Mill to Clachan Cottage-Bowmore Overlay £ 240,082.70 A846 Bunanuisg to Cruach Rd - Bowmore Inlay £ 195,759.74 A847 Gowanlea to Seaview - Bruichladdich, including structural repairs to Burnside Inlay / Overlay / Structural Repair £ 115,793.73 A847 Bruach Gorm to Sewage Works - Pt Charlotte Inlay / Overlay £ 188,372.58 B8085 Colonsay Overlay £ 36,524.58 2025 Pre-SD B8085 & B8086 / U48 Colonsay Pre-SD 2025 £ 66,666.67 District Total 843,200.00£ 2023/24 schemes re-scheduled for delivery in 2024/25 Scheme Location, Road number/Name Works Type 2023/24 allocated budget C/F B8001 Achmeanach farm ( Cloanaig Slip site) Slope Stabilisation £464,000 Islay - A846 - Corrary Hill - Island Ho ( ferry delay) Overlay £167,134 Islay - C12 - S of Barr to W of Cattadle ( ferry delay) Overlay £95,414 Page 12