How and when carriageway inspections are undertaken: EIR release

“I applied for compensation for damage to my car and the claim was rejected. Could you please send me how and when you undertake inspections of your carriageways? Could you also please email me a copy of my initial claim please? the claim number is [Redacted]”

You also confirmed the location of your request on 21 November as the M74 Northbound between J10 and J12.

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.

Scotland Transerv who maintain the M74 between J10 and J12 on behalf of Transport Scotland, carry out safety inspections in accordance with the 4th Generation Term Contract for the Management and Maintenance of the Trunk Road Network at frequencies not exceeding seven days. This contract can be viewed at https://www.transport.gov.scot/media/35900/sw-combi.pdf

Slip roads and link roads at interchanges are inspected at the same frequency as the associated main carriageway of the trunk road.  

Safety inspections are carried out by a team of two. All inspection and safety patrol personnel are sufficiently responsible and competent for the task, will have received suitable training and be fully conversant with inspection procedures and health and safety requirements prior to undertaking any such inspections. The inspection vehicle travels at around 40 mph.

Where possible safety inspections are carried out during off-peak traffic periods to minimise traffic disruption.

Detailed inspections are also undertaken on each element of the trunk road asset. These are walked inspections and are typically undertaken on an annual basis (although this can change depending on the particular asset being inspected). Further information can be found in the 4G Contract https://www.transport.gov.scot/media/35900/sw-combi.pdf

The sections relevant to inspections are-

• Schedule 7: Part 1 of the contract provides an overview of inspections, surveys and defect categories and response times.
• 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.

In accordance with the contract between the Scottish Ministers and the Operating Company, they are required to indemnify the Scottish Ministers against claims such as yours. Therefore, it is for Scotland Transerv to deal with your claim and any subsequent appeals you may have regarding their decision.