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Question from: County Councillor Iain McIntosh Subject: Unclassified road maintenance changes
Question:
I am writing to you regarding the recent budget announcement by Powys County Council concerning the maintenance policy of unclassified minor roads. According to the information made available, it has been stated that "As and when Unclassified minor roads (50% of network) require maintenance works, the road is to be broken up and reverted back to stone track (unsurfaced) roads reducing future maintenance expenditure". This policy raises several questions and concerns that I hope you can address.
Firstly, could you please clarify the Council's legal responsibilities in maintaining unclassified roads? Given the significant role these roads play in our community's connectivity and safety, it's crucial to understand how the Council views its obligations in this regard.
Moreover, I am keen to understand whether this policy will be uniformly applied across all unclassified roads, including those in rural areas as well as those within housing estates in urban areas. The distinction is critical as it impacts a wide range of residents with varying degrees of accessibility and connectivity needs.
Additionally, I am concerned about the lack of publicly available impact assessments regarding this policy. Specifically, I would like to request information on any assessments conducted to evaluate the potential decrease in property values within the affected areas. Such a policy could have far-reaching implications on homeowners and the local housing market.
Equally, the impact on vehicle wear and tear, travelling times, drainage issues, winter maintenance challenges, road safety and potential increases in dust and air pollution during hot and dry weather conditions are all areas of concern that warrant thorough investigation. Have these impacts been adequately assessed, and if so, could you provide the findings of these assessments please?
Furthermore, considering Welsh Government allocates funding for road maintenance, has there been any indication of how this policy might affect future funding levels? The reduction in maintenance work could arguably justify a decrease in allocated funds, which may have broader implications for the Council's budget and priorities.
Lastly, Liberal Democrat and Labour members have historically expressed a commitment to maintaining our road network, particularly in the run up to the 2022 County Council elections. In light of this policy, which seems to contradict such commitments, how does the Council justify this decision? Many residents are eager to understand the rationale behind a policy that appears to deviate from previous assurances regarding road maintenance and infrastructure investment.
I appreciate your attention to these matters and look forward to your detailed response. It is important for the residents of Powys to fully understand the implications of this policy, both in the short and long term. Your prompt reply will be greatly valued by many in our community who are seeking clarity and reassurance on these critical issues.
Minutes: Response by the Cabinet Member:
Thank you, Cllr Iain, for your questions which I hope I have responded to adequately below. As a highway authority we have a duty to maintain the highway, so far as ‘reasonably practical’, whereby it is acknowledged that the level of care required is considered on a risk-based approach. I hope that goes some way to answering your first question. By definition, an ‘unclassified’ road is generally of low significance to traffic and is often only of very local importance. That is not always the case, however, and our road hierarchy is not therefore solely based on classification alone. Most roads have a purpose and the risk based approach helps to justify the level of care required. The proposed saving that you refer to has been placed into future years and is only a broad estimate, as further consideration and detail is still required to be formulated before a specific proposal is presented for consideration. This will not be a decision we would take lightly and would need to be considered and decided upon in the context of other pressures and saving proposals at that time. Any change in policy that may or may not be required would be subject to the normal democratic process.
In respect of impact assessments, they are provided when the proposal is put to the Council. As mentioned above there were no proposals for this budget round therefore impact assessments were not required. Your questions in respect of wear and tear, dust etc will be addressed, if necessary, at the appropriate time.
With regards your query of Welsh Government funding, I would advise that the revenue support grant is a crude tool, with payments made to authorities for roads based upon the network length of urban road lengths, weighted road length (principal roads weighted 3.2, all other roads 1) and traffic flow. We do not foresee any significant impact in this funding with respect of this proposal.
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