Edinburgh considers case for a unified road repair service

City of Edinburgh Council is considering creating a single road repair service that will be responsible for inspecting, designing, fixing and maintaining streets.

The unified service forms part of a plan to improve the way the council carries out road repairs that goes before councillors later this week.

According to the Road Condition Index (RCI), the standard of the Scottish capital’s roads is improving. The percentage of roads that should be considered for investment has continued to improve on previous years and is now at 34.8%. However, the council wants its Roads Service to perform better.

A report on the Roads Services Improvement Plan, which will be considered by the Transport and Environment Committee on 10 August, states: “The council needs to maintain a high-quality road network to ensure the safety of road users, to ensure road users can freely travel around our network and to protect the overall appearance of Edinburgh as a city.”

The plan proposes to create a single road repairs service that will be responsible for owning the full "journey” from inspection, through design to carrying out the repair and treatment, rather than various elements being carried out by different section, as is the case currently.

The council hopes that this combined operational arm of Roads Service will look after all elements of the design and maintenance of everything from pothole repairs to a major surface enhancement, allowing more effective asset investment decisions to be made.

Another key measure in the plan is to procure a prime contractor to carry out major works on the council's behalf, helping reduce delays to projects and securing competitive pricing.

Transport convener Cllr Lesley Macinnes said: “Keeping Edinburgh moving by investing in our roads and pavements is a major priority for the Council. But we need to ensure our Roads Service is properly equipped and structured so that it can successfully perform all its functions, including road repairs and maintenance and winter weather treatment. The draft Roads Services Improvement Plan will go a long way towards helping improve the standards of roads and footways across the capital.”