A77 cycleway Ayr: EIR release

FOI reference: FOI/17/02299
Date received: 10 October 2017
Date responded: 30 November 2017

Information requested

'Cycleway, A77(T) Ayr

I would be grateful if you could provide the following information -

1. When did the cycleway come into being?

2. Did a footway exist originally and was this simply redetermined as a cycleway?

3. Was a safety audit undertaken when the cycleway was provided? If so what procedure was followed?

4. Since the cycleway came into being, what ongoing maintenance and safety checks are undertaken and what is their scope, frequency, etc. ?

5. If checks are undertaken, can you please provide the dates that these were carried out over the past 3 years.

6. If inspections highlight issues what are the procedures for rectifying these?'

Response

As the information you have requested is 'environmental information' for the purposes of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs), we are required to deal with your request under those Regulations. We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA.

This exemption is subject to the 'public interest test'. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption, because there is no public interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes. This is essentially a technical point and has no material effect on the outcome of your request.

I have numbered our response for ease of reference.

1. The redetermination of the footway came into force on 6 December 2010.

2. I can confirm that the footway did exist originally but was widened in places to form a segregated path for use by pedestrians, cyclists and horses.

3. A Stage 2 Road Safety Audit was carried out in accordance with HD 19/03 of Volume 5, Section 2, Part 2 of the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB). The audit reviewed the detailed aspects of the design proposals in advance of construction.

4. Detailed footpath inspections are carried out once a year by our Operating Company Scotland Transerv. Details of the inspections and surveys that are carried out by our operating company can be found within the 4th Generation Term Contract for Management and Maintenance of the Scottish Trunk Road Network;

https://www.transport.gov.scot/media/35900/sw-combi.pdf

• Schedule 7: Part 1 of the contract provides an overview of inspections and surveys.

• Schedule 7: Part 2: Section 2.7 of the contract provides details of inspections and their frequency during winter.

• Schedule 7: Part 6: Section 3 of the contract details the inspections and their frequency for Structures.

Further details of the inspections and surveys can be found in the Transport Scotland Road Asset Management Plan, Section 5.2;

https://www.transport.gov.scot/publication/road-asset-management-plan-for-scottish-trunk-roads-january-2016/j408891-09/#para52

5. Dates of inspections are detailed below;

2014	03 December 2014
2015	29 January 2016
2016	27 November 2016
2017	24 November 2017

6. Procedures for rectifying defects are set out in the 4th Generation Term Contract for management and maintenance of the Scottish Trunk Road Network. Defects can be categorised as Category 1 and 2 defects. Details can be found at the following web link and are copied below for ease:

http://www.transportscotland.gov.uk/road/maintenance/operating-companies

Category 1 Defect means a Defect that necessitates prompt attention because it presents:

(i) an immediate or imminent hazard, or

(ii) a risk of rapid structural deterioration to the affected element.

Category 2 Defect means any Defect which is not a Category 1 Defect.

In addition, the following extract is taken from Schedule 7 Part 1 of the 4th Generation Term Contract for Management and Maintenance of the Scottish Trunk Road Network:

2. Defect categories and response times.

2.1. Classification of Category 1 and Category 2 Defects

2.1.1. When classifying Category 1 and Category 2 Defects, the Operating Company shall give consideration to the potential impact on all road users including motorists, pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, equestrians and disabled users.

2.1.2. The Operating Company shall comply with the provisions of the Transport Scotland Trunk Road Inspection Manual regarding classification of Defects.

2.1.3. The Transport Scotland Trunk Road Inspection Manual is deemed not to contain an exhaustive compendium of Defects. In the absence of a description of a Defect in the Transport Scotland Trunk Road Inspection Manual, the Operating Company shall make the classification from first principles.

The following extract is taken from Schedule 7, Part 1 of the 4th Generation Term Contract for management and maintenance of the Scottish Trunk Road Network and details the timescales for repairing defects:

2.2. Category 1 Defects Response Times

2.2.1. Unless stated otherwise in this Part, Category 1 Defects shall be dealt with by the Operating Company in priority order as stated in paragraph 2.2 of this Part.

2.2.2. The Operating Company's inspection team or initial Incident Response Resources shall make the Category 1 Defect safe when identified. This shall be through executing immediate repairs, removing the hazard or by taking any other measures necessary to protect the public and other users of the Unit.

2.2.3. Where a Category 1 Defect renders a Trunk Road unsafe for road users, the Operating Company shall, under Police instruction or on receipt of an appropriate Order, close the relevant part of the Trunk Road for as short a period as possible while remedial action is undertaken.

2.2.4. Where a Category 1 Defect cannot be repaired immediately or the hazard cannot be removed, the Operating Company shall take action to make the area safe until the required temporary or permanent repairs have been completed.

2.2.5. The temporary or permanent repairs shall be undertaken as soon as possible and no later than: (i) 06:00 on the day following identification for Category 1 Defects on carriageways, and (ii) within 24 hours of identification for all other Category 1 Defects.

2.2.6. Where a temporary repair has been carried out, the deferred permanent repair period for the following Defect types shall be: (i) 28 days for carriageway surface, and (ii) 56 days for Bridge parapets.

2.2.7. All other Category 1 Defects shall be repaired permanently within the specific period referred to in this Part, or no later than 28 days after identification where no specific period is stated.

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