Agenda item

Consider report by Service Director Assets and Infrastructure.  (Copy attached.)

2.         WINTER SERVICE UPDATE

2.1       With reference to paragraph 5 of the Minute of 4 December 2019, there had been circulated copies of an update report by the Service Director Assets and Infrastructure on the findings of a comprehensive Winter Services Provision review which had been undertaken at the start of the calendar year and related to the prioritisation and implementation, where appropriate, of the recommendations proposed in the review. 

2.2       The report explained that SBC provided a winter service on nearly 3,000 km of roads across the Scottish Borders and an annual Winter Plan was prepared to outline the steps that would be taken to ensure that the roads network was safe, within available resources.  As part of the proposal and the need to provide previously identified savings from the winter service an Independent review of the Council’s winter service provision was undertaken comparing the Council’s arrangements with that of peer Authorities.  The Winter Services Provision Investigation Report had been received in a final draft form and a summary was attached as Appendix A to the report.  The report discussed the findings and recommendations from that report and made further recommendations on the veracity of these along with suggested timing for their introduction or the trialling and/or further investigation of them.  Financial analysis of the proposals remained ongoing due to the complexity.  Adoption of some of the recommendations required amendment to the existing Winter Service Plan that the Council operated, and the SBC Winter Service Plan 2019/20, incorporating those changes was presented at Appendix B to the report.  The report detailed the general findings from the Winter Service Provision Investigation and Peer Review and detailed the review of the recommendations from the Winter Service provision investigation report. Members discussed each of the 15 recommendations in turn and approved all with the exception of recommendation 8. Recommendation 8 proposed that footway treatment operations would in future only be undertaken during standard day hours (7:30 to 15:30 Monday to Friday) except in extreme weather events.  Members expressed concern in relation to this proposal as there had been many complaints received previously about gritting of footpaths from people walking to work and as many of the Council’s schools were increasingly becoming community schools they were open to the public at weekends.  The Neighbourhood Operations Manager, Mr Hedley advised that this approach had been informally trailed in some areas during the previous winter and there was the option to pre-treat footpaths the day before.  With regard to complaints he advised the footpaths had not been gritted as the forecast had not highlighted changing weather conditions.  Once primary routes had been treated local intelligence was used to direct resources and it was hoped to make more use of the resilient communities network.  Assurances were given that there would be no change to the way that severe weather events were dealt with.  Members still had misgivings regarding these changes and requested a further report specifically dealing with footpaths with detailed information on the impact of these proposals. 

            DECISION

(a)       NOTED the findings of the Winter Service Provision Investigation report.

(b)     AGREED:-

          (i)      to approve the proposed amendments to the Winter Service Plan 2019/20 with the exception of Recommendation 8 relating to reducing the hours when footway treatment would be undertaken;  and

(ii)     that a further report detailing the consequences of this proposal together with detailed information with regard to those routes which would be affected be presented to the next meeting of Executive.