Kent CC order survey, instead of repairing crumbling roads.

[Jon39]

I received a letter today, jointly from Ipsos and Kent County Council.
It was addressed to my house, not me, so they probably won't be expecting a reply from an inanimate object.

The heading is 'Please help us improve local streets, roads ...'

Considering that the Highways Department employees only have to drive along their potholed and sunken manhole cover roads, to discover what a shocking state they are in, why waste money on trying to ask me what is wrong?

Everyone except it seems the Council, know how dreadful the situation is and we also know that their bodged pothole repairs only last a few weeks anyway.

The answer is, sack the lot and employ French road builders. At least they know how to lay a long lasting smooth road surface.

[RustyMX5]

I've often mused the question of how expensive it would be to have a half dozen council run 'Google streetview' cars which simply drive around identifying potholes all day before uploading the data when they get back to base.

[Jon39]

RustyMX5 said:

I've often mused the question of how expensive it would be to have a half dozen council run 'Google streetview' cars which simply drive around identifying potholes all day before uploading the data when they get back to base.

That is an idea.
The councils could first carry out a risk assessment and consultation.
Then advertise the job of driver and relief driver for the half a dozen cars, that you suggest will be required.
The selection process would need to be referred to the diversity officer (they/him/her is working from home based in the South of France, so might be a delay).
When the drivers are eventually ready for (what the councils call) work, there will be intensive training covering; net-zero, diversity, discrimination, health and safety, mental health awareness, recognising over work symptoms, pothole recognition, definition of a road.
Data gathering commences and back at base the will be a compulsory rest period.
No pothole repairs ever take place.


The existing system is website based; https://www.gov.uk/report-pothole
Council tax payers report potholes.
Data gathering commences.
No pothole repairs ever take place.

Your new recommended system is certainly better, because more work and more jobs are created.
Outside reports of potholes cannot be relied upon, because only the council know the correct true definition of a pothole.
The final outcome is exactly the same as now, so that is regarded by the council as good, because there is no deterioration at all in the service provided to council tax payers.

And that is called a good day at the council. Job done, everyone have a bonus.

[courty]

Jon39 said:

The answer is, sack the lot and employ French road builders. At least they know how to lay a long lasting smooth road surface.

Most Spanish roads are upgraded to a very good quality. Also, local roads there don't suffer from drain covers or patches to access services under the road as everything is run to the side.
This is all very expensive. They invested money with accompanying EU infrastructure funding available to member states. The Swiss have exemplary roads...they just invest the money.
Regional councils don't have funding, they are stretched just fulfilling their legal obligations to fill holes as and when they are reported.

[WrekinCrew]

We just received (I'd guess) the same survey from Telford & Wrekin.

It's 29 sections, each with a dozen or so questions, each with six options. I suspect hardly anyone will have the stamina to complete it, so the council will conclude it's not worth spending money on roads and public transport.

[Altitude]

As ever, everyone has easy answer, just do this, just employ the french, just do the other.

Constantly shows a fundamental misunderstanding of just how close to breaking point our councils and public services are. There is absolutely the ability, equipment and people to build world class roads, perform top notch repairs and upgrade roads.

There is not the money. The government has run all our services down to the point where they can barely meet minimum legal requirements. My own area of work is exactly the same. Stop spending money, make savings, stop overtime, stop this, stop the other. And the public suffer as a result.

Find the councils a significant amount of money ring fenced for repairs and they will slowly catch up, continue to take money away from them and things like roads will continue their managed decline.

[ARHarh]

Or maybe we could just repair the roads efficiently. A hole near me had a visit from a man with a spray can to mark the hole, a few months later the man revisited to remark the hole, a week later a team turn up to perform a temporary repair, as the proper repair needs a special machine which is being used elsewhere. Another 2 weeks pass before the proper repair is done. All this whilst the hole next to this pot hole is too small to warrant a repair so its left.

I am sure if I was left to handle this I could make it more efficient

[Dingu]

ARHarh said:

Or maybe we could just repair the roads efficiently. A hole near me had a visit from a man with a spray can to mark the hole, a few months later the man revisited to remark the hole, a week later a team turn up to perform a temporary repair, as the proper repair needs a special machine which is being used elsewhere. Another 2 weeks pass before the proper repair is done. All this whilst the hole next to this pot hole is too small to warrant a repair so its left.

I am sure if I was left to handle this I could make it more efficient

I bet you couldn’t.

[Puddenchucker]

RustyMX5 said:

I've often mused the question of how expensive it would be to have a half dozen council run 'Google streetview' cars which simply drive around identifying potholes all day before uploading the data when they get back to base.

Surveying vehicles already exist.

https://www.wdm.co.uk/surveying/rav-scanner-survey...


However, around here the result of road surface surveys seems to be be lowering of speed limits rather than ensurig the road is of an acceptable standard.

[Jon39]

WrekinCrew said:

We just received (I'd guess) the same survey from Telford & Wrekin.

It's 29 sections, each with a dozen or so questions, each with six options. I suspect hardly anyone will have the stamina to complete it, so the council will conclude it's not worth spending money on roads and public transport.

I admire your conscientiousness WrekinCrew, to even bother going beyond the first page. I did not realise just how ridiculous it is, 29x12x6 results in 2,088 answers required.
Imagine the hours and hours of meetings, team think, tea breaks, free lunches, co-ordinated diversity net zero planning, short staff recruitment considerations and how to say "we need more money", just to think up all those questions.

After many years (bit slow perhaps) I have come to the conclusion, that public sector/council Consultations and Surveys really mean, we have already decided what to do, but want to pretend that we are considering your opinion.

I live in an unadopted road, so sometimes residents volunteer to repair potholes themselves. A short section of the same road is council owned and therefore maintained at public expense.

When we repair a pothole, our incentive is that we don't want to do the work again, so first cut vertically around the damaged area (stops the tarmac sliding up and out of the original hole). Fill with tarmac, tamp down leaving the surface slightly proud (vehicles will compress the surface). Apply sealant around the surface edges (to keep water out).

We can observe the council's method on their section of the road.
Pour in tarmac, bang down with the back of a shovel (if they can be bothered, a tamper) then clear off.

Our repairs last for years, the councils just months. I can only presumably that they want repeat work, hence do a shoddy job.

Edited by Jon39 on Monday 24th June 12:41

[Jon39]

Puddenchucker said:

Surveying vehicles already exist.

https://www.wdm.co.uk/surveying/rav-scanner-survey...

Councils just love wasting other people's money.
No need for an expensive (yellow) white elephant.

They could simply borrow a firmly sprung sports car and drive it along every council road. That will immediately reveal which roads require maintenance.
In reality, almost all of them.

Note that two council employees are enjoying a day out, riding around. One to drive and another to press a button starting the data recorder, then talk to the driver about unionised employment requirements. One man one job, or rather one job two men.

That reminds me. The General Secretary of the Unison union (salary £132,000 plus pension benefits) is demanding a 4 day working week for their members, with of course no reduction in pay. They insist that trials have revealed a productivity increase, to justify their demand.
I am a believer in common sense and logic, so If reducing the working week to 4 days improves productivity by 20%, then why stop there. A further reduction to a 3 day week would presumably improve productivity even more. When continuing that interesting phenomenon on to a 0 day working week, we then find that productive output also becomes zero. There seems to be a flaw in her argument, about reducing hours equals greater productivity..

Edited by Jon39 on Tuesday 25th June 21:35

[vikingaero]

I've given up reporting road defects on the KCC website because they are completely useless. On a roundabout I correctly reported a pothole at 3 o'clock looking North. They checked and only found no pothole at the reported location, but did find one at 9 o'clock looking South. FFS!

[Jon39]

vikingaero said:

I've given up reporting road defects on the KCC website because they are completely useless. On a roundabout I correctly reported a pothole at 3 o'clock looking North. They checked and only found no pothole at the reported location, but did find one at 9 o'clock looking South. FFS!

If it wasn't so pathetic, it might be funny.

Even though they had no conception of North, perhaps we can award a point for understanding South (refer to your Council Highways Handbook, Clause 4, Paragraph 210, sub section iii, 'look in the direction of the sun during your lunchtime 12 noon to 2pm)' and two bonus points for a basic understanding of historic analogue clock faces.

Perhaps when the Highways Department recruit these days, maybe an PhD in Woke Studies, is of far greater importance than basic common sense, or the layout of roundabouts.