Content

Salford
City Council - Record of Decision
 
 
I, Councillor Mike McCusker, Lead Member for Planning, Transport
& Sustainable Development,
in exercise of the powers contained within the Council
Constitution, do
hereby:
 
Approve the Crash Barrier Investment Programme 2024/25
 
The
Reasons are:
To facilitate continuous
improvement of the Vehicle Restraint System installations as part
of the defined Network Recovery Plan
 
Options considered and rejected were:
No other options were
considered for this report.
 
Assessment of Risk: 
Medium – it is important that the existing highway vehicle
restraint systems are inspected, repaired and replaced when
appropriate in order to ensure the
continued safety of the travelling public.
 
The source of funding
is: Approved Highways Investment Capital Programme for 2024/25
(general unsupported borrowing).
 
Legal Advice
obtained: 26th January
2024
Helen Chapman Principal
Solicitor 0161 234 3227
Tony Hatton Solicitor 0161 219
6323
 
Section 39 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 imposes a duty upon the
City Council to:

i)            
prepare and carry out a programme of measures
designed to promote road safety and may make contributions towards
the cost of measures for promoting road safety taken by other
authorities or bodies.

ii)           
carry out studies into accidents arising out of the
use of vehicles on roads or part of roads, other than trunk roads,
within their area and must, in the light of those studies, take
such measures as appear to the authority to be appropriate to
prevent such accidents, including the dissemination of information
and advice relating to the use of the roads, the giving of
practical training to road users or any class or description of
road users, the construction, improvement, maintenance or repair of
roads for which they are the highway authority and other measures
taken in the exercise of their powers for controlling, protecting
or assisting the movement of traffic on roads.
 
If studies support the
installation of the crash barriers in order
to improve road safety, then installation of such barriers
would mitigate any liability on the part of the local authority for
failing in its duty of care to implement measures designed to
prevent or reduce accidents, provided those barriers comply with
and have been installed in accordance with all regulatory
requirements.
 
Section 62 of the Highways Act
1980 provides a general power of improvement for maintainable
highways; and section 66 provides that the highway authority may
install rails and fences for the purpose of protecting users of the
highway.
 
Finally, s.41 of the Highways
Act 1980 (‘the Act’) places upon highway authorities
the duty to ‘maintain’ those highways that are
maintainable at the public expense. The Act defines
‘maintenance’ as including repair for the purposes of
the Act.  The said highways should be in
a fit state to accommodate the ordinary traffic which passes or may
be expected to pass along them, which would include the maintenance
of crash barriers where studies have indicated that these should be
installed to improve highway safety.
 
Any works to be undertaken as
part of the Crash Barrier Investment programme referred to in the
body of the report should be procured in accordance with the
Council’s Contractual Standing Orders and the Public Contract
Regulations 2015, and the Council should use a framework to appoint
contractors where a suitable one is available, such as its own
Technical and Highways Works Framework and each appointment should
have its own approval by way of DDN. Should the value of any such
works exceed £150,000, a separate report will need to be
presented to Procurement Board for decision.
 
Financial Advice
obtained: 4th February
2024
Adam Flaherty, Senior
Accountant 0161 793 2747
 
There is sufficient capital
funding within the Highway Crash Barrier Investment Programme for
2024/25, to fund the works identified within this report to a total
cost of £0.12m.
Close monitoring of expenditure
will be necessary to ensure that the programme of works is
delivered within the allocated resources.
Please note these figures are
preliminary and are awaiting full council approval.
 
Procurement Advice
obtained: 22nd January
2024
Heather Stanton, Category
Manager Procurement 0161 686 6296
 
The
Technical and Highways Works Framework was awarded in 2021/22 of
which Vehicle Restraint System (VRS) is listed as Lot
2.  The Council
may appoint contractors following a mini competition exercise from
this framework which is a compliant route in line with SCC standing
orders and PCR’s 2015.
The service group will consider
efficiencies, and any savings opportunities as part of this
procurement activity.
 
HR Implications:
N/A
 
Climate Change
Implications: N/A
 
The
following documents have been used to assist the decision
process:
Report to Lead Member
Briefing
 
Contact Officer:
Steve
Mangan             
Tel No 0161 603
4034
 
This decision is not subject to
consideration by another Lead Member.
 
The appropriate scrutiny panel
to call-in the decision is the Growth & Prosperity Scrutiny
Panel.
 
 

Signed: Councillor McCusker                               
Dated: 14th March 2024
Lead
Member for Planning, Transport & Sustainable
Development
 

 
This decision was published on
15th March 2024.
 
This decision will come into force at
4.00 p.m. on 22nd March 2024, unless it is called-in in accordance with the
decision-making process rules.