Worst roads in Wilmslow identified for repairs

As many of our readers will have noticed, a section of Knutsford Road was resurfaced recently.

This part of the road now looks so much better, particularly when compared to neighbouring roads and raised questions from our readers about which, and how many, local roads will be receiving the same treatment.

I contacted Cheshire East Council (CEC) to find out which other roads they were planning to resurface and in response I received a copy of their Asset Investment Programme - which is the name the Council has given to the work to repair or replace the road network across the Borough.

This programme seeks to "interrupt the current cycle of decline in the condition of our roads by early large scale targeted investment aimed at restoring the overall condition of carriageways to a state where they can then be proactively maintained in an overall 'steady state'. The Investment would be targeted at the areas where the maximum long term benefit can be achieved."

Cheshire East Highways has a duty to maintain the Boroughs' roads in a safe and serviceable manner to ensure adequate skid resistance, help minimise road traffic accidents and reduce the need for expensive structural maintenance.

There are a number of options available and the most widely used in Cheshire East are resurfacing, surface dressing and patching as well as the reactive maintenance such as pothole repair and gully maintenance.

The Cheshire East Highway Network is the Council's largest asset and is vital to the functioning of the Borough. It consists of 1,700 miles of road, 1,200 miles of footways, 38,000 streetlights and 484 bridges.

The Wilmslow Local Area Partnership, which covers Wilmslow, Handforth, Styal, Chorley and Alderley Edge, makes up 6% of the Borough's Network and consists of 92 miles of highway.

Of these 92 miles, 10.5 miles (which represents 4% of the Wilmslow LAP network) are considered to be defective - measured by a machine survey along A,B and C Roads and driven inspections along unclassified roads.

In Year 1 (2012/13) three local roads were identified as being in greatest need of treatment and seventeen for Year 2 (2013/2014).

In addition to Knutsford Road, Chapel Road and Chorley Hall Lane in Alderley Edge were earmarked for the same treatment of a surface course inlay in Year 1. Chapel Road was resurfaced recently but we are awaiting confirmation of when the work on Chorley Hall Lane will be carried out as it had been identified as a Year One (2012/13) scheme.

Sixteen roads in Wilmslow have been identified for either resurfacing, surface dressing or strengthening in the second year of the scheme*.

These are Dean Row Road, Moor Lane, Twinnies Road, Broadway, Bourne Street, Mill Road, Moor Lane, Chapel Road, Cedarway, Sylvan Avenue, Beech Grove, Prescott Road, Lacey Avenue, Alderdale Grove, Stanneylands Close and Davehall Avenue.

The Asset Investment Programme also lists dozens of roads in Wilmslow which have been recommended for resurfacing or surface dressing but are still outstanding. These include Altrincham Road, Station Road and Woodford Road, along with nearly 100 unclassified roads.

I am waiting for confirmation from CEC regarding these outstanding roads - whether they intend to carry out these works and if so when.

* The prioritisation for Year 2 schemes could be subject to change after annual condition surveys have been undertaken and some schemes may only be applied to sections of the road rather than the full length.

Tags:

Cheshire East Council, Highways