New approach to fixing roads, and 17,000 street lights to go LED

Birmingham City Council has approved a new approach to looking after the city's roads and pavements, with an emphasis on preventing damage before it happens, alongside a £10m upgrade of more than 17,000 street lights to LED.

The report was approved by cabinet on 8 September.

After the PFI

The change follows the Department for Transport's decision to discontinue the private finance initiative that has funded the city's highways maintenance. The council has agreed a two-year contract extension with Kier to maintain the network and deliver essential services while the new approach is put in place.

The contract covers highway and footway maintenance, emergency repairs, street lighting, drainage, tree work, winter gritting and traffic management. That includes more than 2,500km of road, 5,000km of footways, 846 structures, three tunnels, 94,000 lighting columns and 76,000 highway trees.

Prevention over repair

The council's ambition is to stop damage where possible and reduce wear and tear, which it says will be cheaper in the long run and leave neighbourhoods looking better.

"The state of the city's roads and pavements is one of the key concerns for residents," said Councillor Rob Grant, Cabinet Member for Transport.

He said potholes and uneven footpaths cause damage, can be dangerous and drag down neighbourhoods, and that a street in good condition makes residents and visitors more likely to keep it clean and look after it.

Brighter, cheaper street lights

The £10m lighting scheme will switch more than 17,000 lights to LED, cutting energy use and carbon emissions. As well as main traffic routes, it will focus on estate roads and footpaths, which make up the start and end of most people's journeys, with the aim of encouraging more walking and cycling after dark.