Agenda item

(Report by Head of Transport and Development Planning)

(1)       Kent County Council’s (KCC) local transport funding for 2008/09 was determined by the Department for Transport (DfT) in December 2006 as part of its assessment and settlement announcement regarding Kent’s transport strategy, the Local Transport Plan (LTP).  The funding had been provided to support local transport schemes that delivered the LTP, which itself set out the County Council’s approach to achieving a number of key transport objectives, including:-

·                    Improve access to key services by sustainable modes of transport;

·                    Tackle the occurrence of peak hour congestion, particularly in larger urban areas;

·                    Improve road safety by reducing the number of people killed or seriously injured on Kent’s roads; and

·                    Improve local air quality, particularly in designated Air Quality Management Areas (AQMAs).

(2)       Kent’s LTP funding for 2008/09 included a capital allocation of £12.883m, which consisted of borrowing approvals and grant and was specifically for the implementation of Integrated Transport (IT) schemes.  As a Floor Authority, KCC had determined that the allocation should be capped at a level to which the borrowing element could be fully supported.  Therefore, the actual funding allocation for 2008/09 had been determined by the County Council’s Medium Term Financial Plan and was subsequently set at £9.1m for 2008/09.  Whilst the lower allocation represented a shortfall when compared to the Government’s initial LTP settlement for 2008/09, it did represent a significant increase in scheme funding for Kent when compared to previous years; in 2007/08, funding was set at £7.3m.

(3)       The report provided a summary of the 126 schemes that made up the proposed Transportation and Safety Package Programme for 2008/09 and provided details of how Kent’s £9.1m investment programme would be allocated across the County.  The schemes proposed for 2008/09 were presented in order of District and included the individual PIPKIN Score, Scheme Priority Rating and Scheme Rank (out of 126 schemes) and were shown in Appendix 1 of the report.

(4)       The proposed Transportation and Safety Package Programme for 2008/09 represented a significant milestone in determining Kent’s local transport priorities and establishing local investment programmes in that it had been devised using Kent’s Scheme Prioritisation Methodology, PIPKIN. 

(5)       A report outlining the principles and a proposal to implement PIPKIN was presented to the Board in July 2006, and was approved by the Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Waste on the strength of the recommendations of the Board.  The introduction of PIPKIN had determined that all scheme proposals must be subjected to a formal assessment and be prioritised in accordance with their likely impact and wider contribution towards Kent’s strategic and local transport objectives.  PIPKIN also provided the County Council with the ability to assess an infinite number of schemes and between February and May 2007, the County Council formally assessed and prioritised a list of 286 scheme contenders.  The cumulative build cost of the schemes equated to more than £20m.  The proposed Transportation and Safety Package Programme for 2008/09 included the top priority schemes from the initial list of 286 schemes.

(6)       Following the formal scheme assessment phase the initial outputs of PIPKIN were subjected to a process of validation and moderation.  In June 2007, a team of PIPKIN users was tasked with validating the inputs and outputs of the model to ensure the accuracy of each scheme assessment and to ensure that schemes were prioritised in a consistent manner.  In July 2007, the proposed list was presented to the Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Waste and to the Director of Kent Highway Services (KHS) for their initial comments. 

(7)       A further benefit of the PIPKIN process was that it was closely aligned to the Transforming KHS programme delivery timetable.  The emerging delivery timetable required the annual Transportation and Safety Package Programme to be presented to the Board earlier in the scheme concept, design and build process.  Therefore the proposed programme for 2008/09 was presented to the Board in September 2007, rather than in March 2008. 

(8)       Kent’s scheme priorities for 2008/09 provided ongoing investment in urban traffic management measures, including UTMC in Maidstone and Canterbury and support for local public transport services, particularly in Quality Bus Partnership (QBP) areas.  The proposed schemes also included an evidence based programme of Casualty Reduction Measures (CRMs) and support for continued investment in sustainable transport measures including Smarter Choices initiatives. 

(9)       The proposed programme included:-

·                    Continuation of Kent’s pilot UTMC project, which had already delivered the County’s Traffic Control Centre in Maidstone. (Funding in 2008/09 - £500K).

·                    Phase 1 of improvements to the Maidstone Bridge Gyratory System.  (£300K).

·                    Phase 1 funding for improvements to the A2 Slip Roads in Canterbury.  (£650K).

·                    Public Transport Infrastructure improvements to provide bus priority in Ashford, thereby supporting the delivery of the Warren Park and Ride site and delivery of SMARTLINK. (£250K).

·                    Funding for the development of UTMC across Kent and targeted funding to support the evolution of UTMC in Canterbury.  (£250K, Countywide) and (£400K, Canterbury).

·                    Investment in Quality Bus Partnership (QBP) initiatives in Ashford, Canterbury, Maidstone and Thanet and Tunbridge Wells. (c.£1.5M).

·                    Improved access to key services by sustainable transport modes, including; improved bus and pedestrian access to QEQM Hospital, Thanet, improved access to schools through a countywide programme of Safer Routes to Schools and Smarter Choices initiatives.  (c.£1M).

·                    Investment in road safety initiatives through a targeted programme of Countywide Casualty Reduction Measures (CRMs).  (£360K).

(10)     The proposed Transportation and Safety Package Programme for 2008/09 represented a balanced programme of investment for Kent.  The schemes presented above demonstrated the strategic nature of the proposed programme.  A key strength of the PIPKIN process and therefore the programmes of investment derived from it, was that whilst PIPKIN recognised the need to tackle strategically important issues it also recognised the genuine need to tackle local priorities.  This feature had enabled KCC to provide ongoing investment to improve access to local services and promote and support local sustainable travel initiatives; including public transport, walking and cycling.  The approach also enabled Kent to prioritise local safety schemes using local data relating to personal injury crashes.

(11)     During debate Mr Hall stated that the rejection list would be circulated to Members.

(12)     The Board:-

(a)       supported the proposals for recommendation to the Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Waste that:-

(i)         the proposed Transportation and Safety Package Programme for 2008/09, as set out in Appendix 1 of the report, be approved; and

(ii)        the Joint Transportation Boards receive a report on the approved schemes for their area; and

(b)       agreed to provide ongoing support for the development and application of Kent’s Scheme Prioritisation Model, PIPKIN.

            (The list referred to in paragraph (11) above was subsequently circulated to Members on 12 October)