One Island - The Isle of Wight Council's Improvement Plan

Accessibility | Click to Skip Navigation | Site Map | Set as Homepage | Report Problem

One Island Introduction
Respect
Pride
Value

A-Z Council Services

Click here to read the One Island Magazine

Services for Adults on the Isle of Wight

Campaign: Improving public roads

Locations: under review

Background and purpose:

To secure a Private Finance Initiative (PFI) for the Island’s highway network. Overall the project is for a 25 year Private Finance Initiative to improve, maintain and manage the entire Isle of Wight’s highway network (the overall Aim of the Project is to improve, within 7 years, the Isle of Wight’s deteriorated highway network to a reasonable condition and maintain it as such for a further 18 years).

The Council undertook best value reviews in 2001 and 2002 which clearly identified that the Isle of Wight has a road network in poor condition. There has been a significant rise in insurance claims over the past three years. There is a clear body of evidence supporting the need for a PFI as follows:

Currently seven roads (156km) on the Island have weight restrictions and a large number of roads have width restrictions. Without funding, an additional nine roads (24km) will either have to be closed or have restrictions placed upon them.
Of the Council’s 11,700 street lighting columns an estimated 5,534 (47 percent) are over 30 years old and in need of replacement.

Wider outcomes - all residents will be affected by the project and benefits for the community are huge. The PFI is seen as a major catalyst to the Island’s regeneration and development. It will stimulate economic development assisting the private sector in bringing raw materials to their factories and distributing finished goods to the marketplace. Tourism will also receive a boost from the improvements to the public realm and easier travel conditions.

Progress report:

The proposal for a Highway Maintenance PFI has full cross-party political support. The Council’s Cabinet approved the option appraisal on 20 April 2005 and the full Council, on 22 February 2006, agreed to allocate £1.73 million towards the costs and fees for setting up the PFI project. At its meeting on 5 September 2006 the Cabinet agreed to submit an Expression of Interest to the Department of Transport.

Activities for next period:

It is also recognised that the quality of the Councils roads are sub-standard and require urgent attention. The council has bid for Private Finance Initiative (PFI) funding from the government to address the substantial backlog of work required on Island roads. However, should the Council be successful in its bid, work on the roads will only commence in the 2009/10 financial year and it is therefore critical that the Council continues to invest in upgrading its roads to the best of its ability, maximising the use of existing resources.

A decision, by the Department of Transport, on our Expression of Interest is expected towards the end of 2007.