Transport Insights

I have a small story in the latest issue of Local Transport Today (LTT) about renewals work by National Highways and Network Rail, which has a particular salience given the amount that the roads operator is due to spend on renewals in the next five years.

You can read the whole piece for free on LTT’s sister website, TransportXtra, but here is the gist of it:

Both National Highways and Network Rail are falling short of optimal performance in their management of large infrastructure renewals, according to a review carried for the Office of Rail and Road (ORR).

It comes as the national roads operator begins work on its third five-year Road Investment Strategy (RIS 3), with a record spend of £8.4bn on renewals, outstripping spending on enhancements for the first time.

If you are interested in maturity models and the difference between “managing” and “optimal”, the story has more detail. I hope I have explained it coherently.

The interesting twist in the story is that:

While the CPCS review also gave Network Rail a sub-optimal “Managing” maturity rating, it suggested that the national roads operator could learn from its rail counterpart in some areas, including working with its Centre of Excellence to understand what processes or products they have that drive efficiencies and may be applicable.

It said: “Network Rail has an extensive product suite specifically related to early stages of development of projects. Given this is where National Highways is seeing significant variation in scope which is driving costs and schedules there may be applicable approaches that they can adopt.”

Another twist that is not in the LTT story is that the recommendation in the report that:

National Highways should finalise the national programmes change process and implement a Change Panel as a priority to strengthen scrutiny of the impact of early stage changes on cost, risk and schedule.

Is followed by the pointed comment that

This work should pay particular attention to the issues shown on M6 Lune Gorge where post-construction contract award, the significant delays and resulting impacts are not shown in project records.

Unfortunately, in the meantime, the BBC has reported further delays on the scheme (pictured):

Plans to close a busy motorway junction while repairs to ageing bridges were carried out are being reviewed, National Highways said.

Major repairs to structures at Lune Gorge on the M6 were due to start next spring, meaning overnight closures and a contraflow system would come into force between junction 38 at Tebay and junction 37 at Kendal, in Cumbria.