II
ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ
Annex I
Network Management
Plan
II
Contents
1.0
Introduction
2.0
Staffordshire’s Hierarchy of Network Management
3.0
Key Issues for Holistic Network Management
4.0
Measuring Network Management Performance
5.0
Summary
I1
II
1.0
INTRODUCTION
The Network Management Plan (NMP) is the summary document of Staffordshire
County Council’s approach to improving the overall operation of the highway network.
Specifically the NMP addresses congestion and its causes in all forms.
The introduction of the Traffic Management Act 2004 (TMA) is an indication of the
Government’s commitment to tackling the problem of congestion. The TMA places a
new Network Management Duty (NMD) upon local transport authorities and provides
them with new powers to assist in undertaking this Duty.
In the TMA, the Network Management Duty states:
“ (1) It is the duty of a local traffic authority to manage their road network with a
view to achieving, so far as may be reasonably practicable having regard to their
other obligations, policies and objectives, the following objectives:
(a) securing the expeditious movement of traffic on the authority’s road
network; and,
(b) facilitating the expeditious movement of traffic on road networks for
which another authority is the traffic authority.”
(2) The action which the authority may take in performing that duty includes, in
particular , any action which they consider will contribute in securing:
(a) the more efficient use of their network; or
(b) the avoidance, elimination or reduction of road congestion or other
disruption to the movement of traffic on their network or a road for which
another authority is the traffic authority.”
In the Staffordshire context, with County’s diverse mixture of rural and urban areas, the
application of the TMA and NMD must be tailored to achieve targeted outcomes. The
NMP lays out the framework under which actions will be carried out.
I2
II
2.0 STAFFORDSHIRE’S HIERARCHY OF NETWORK MANAGEMENT
This Network Management Plan (NMP) lays out Staffordshire County Council’s
policies, strategies, and actions to deliver holistic network management. The principal
aim is to optimise the use of the limited highway asset available through better
management on all levels, and employing techniques and technologies that assist in
this aim.
Figure NMP 2.1 demonstrates the principles that the NMP must deliver upon and their
context in relation to the underpinning aims of the wider Local Transport Plan (LTP).
Fig. NMP 2.1 : Principles of the Network Management Plan
OPTIMISED NETWORK USE
Asset
Management
Inventory
Data
Maintenance
Network
Management
Development
Improvement
Environment
ITS
Enforcement
Co-ordination
of Activities
Safety
Speed
Parking
Control of
Activities,
FPNs
Congestion
Moving Traffic
Offences
Accessibility
Traffic Manager
Staffordshire County Council has recently undergone organisational changes to
accommodate the principles of the TMA. A specific post has been created within the
organisation for the Traffic Manager; the organisational set-up is highlighted in Figure
NMP 2.2a and Figure NMP 2.2b.
I3
II
The organisational structure now established, and implemented since September 2005,
embodies the principles of parity and independence within the Traffic Manager’s remit,
as required by the TMA. The key functions of the Traffic Manager’s Business Unit (the
Network Management Unit) are:
•
•
•
•
the delivery of a co-ordinated, planned, and effective response to the TMA and
NMD across the whole of the organisation
providing a focal point for the authority championing optimised use of the
highway network
influencing internal and external highway stakeholders
ensuring implementation of all actions in a timely manner to deliver compliance
with the NMD
Figure NMP 2.2a : Staffordshire County Council Development Services
Directorate Organisational Chart
Corporate Director of
Development Services
Deputy Corporate
Director
Deputy Corporate
Director
Planning and Regulation
Service Area
Staffordshire Highways
Service Area
• Transport Planning
• LTP
• County Planning
• Development Control
• Waste Management
• Environmental Unit
• Regeneration
• Countryside
• Research
• Tourism
I4
Traffic
Manager
• Congestion and Network
Management
• Decriminalised Parking
• Moving Traffic Offences
• Highway Maintenance
- Routine Maintenance
- Structural Maintenance
- Cyclic Maintenance
- Winter Maintenance
• Highway Improvement
- Integrated Transport
- Improvement Projects
- Bridges
- Safety & Community
• Accord (maintenance contractor)
• Wrekin (construction contractor)
• Highways Policy
• Programming and Planning
• Road Safety Education and Training
II
Figure NMP 2.2b : Structure of the Network Management Unit
Traffic Manager
Parking Manager
Assistant Network Manager
(TRO)
TRO review, DPE, Moving Traffic
Offences etc
Traffic
Regulation
Assistants
Highway Network Manager
Asst. Network Manager
(Development)
LTP co-ordination, internal and
external stakeholder liaison,
congestion management,
contingency planning,
passenger transport etc.
Business
Development
Officer
Asst. Network Manager
(Co-ordination)
Co-ordination, control and
enforcement of all activities
on the highway network,
permit schemes etc
Area North
Area West
Area East
Network
Co-ordinator
Network
Co-ordinator
Network
Co-ordinator
Network
Inspectors
Network
Inspectors
Network
Inspectors
Joint Administrative Resource
At the time writing, the Traffic Manager for Staffordshire is:
Mr David Wilson – Deputy Corporate Director (Staffordshire Highways)
Telephone: 01785 276695
Fax: 01785 854037
Email: david.wilson@staffordshire.gov.uk
I5
II
3.0 KEY ISSUES FOR HOLISTIC NETWORK MANAGEMENT
The key policies in the NMP are encapsulated in Figure NMP3.1.
Figure NMP 3.1 : Network Management Polices
NETWORK MANAGEMENT POLICIES
NMP3
Manage all network information and its
interface with highway stakeholders
NMP1
Measure, monitor, report and
continually improve the actions
taken to manage the network
NMP2
Network
Management
Analyse, identify and target
the causes of congestion
Balance the actions in managing
congestion against safety, accessibility
and environmental considerations
NMP4
Policy NMP1
Measure, monitor, report and continually improve the actions taken to
manage the highway network
Section 3.1 to 3.3 of this NMP details the actions to be taken to implement network
management in line with the TMA, and in particular the NMD.
Section 4.0 details the measurement, monitoring, and reporting of actions.
I6
II
Policy NMP2
Analyse, identify and target the causes of congestion
Section 3.1 of this NMP details the actions to be taken to implement network
management in line with the TMA, and in particular the NMD.
Policy NMP3
To manage all network information and its interface with highway
stakeholders
Sections 3.2 and 3.3 of this NMP focus on information management and
stakeholder involvement.
Policy NMP4
To balance the actions in managing congestion against safety,
accessibility and environmental considerations
Throughout the NMP the ethos of balance in the application of the actions against
network management is instilled. It is a priority for Staffordshire County Council to
address the key issues but not at the expense of other aims and objectives.
Whilst the focus of this NMP is to address congestion, it must be noted that in
Staffordshire congestion is not the priority focus of the LTP.
However, it is
acknowledged that congestion occurring now, and predicted to occur in the future, is an
issue that cannot be overlooked. There are many actions that can be undertaken to
control congestion alongside the other aims of the LTP.
Congestion does currently occur in pockets of Staffordshire’s highway network but
perceptions of the acuteness of this are subjective. Whilst Staffordshire as whole does
not suffer from congestion in relative terms compared to that of metropolitan areas,
there are issues of local concern that are emotive to the people of Staffordshire. It is
the aim of the NMP to promote actions that will address these local issues.
Network management in its broadest sense will address all of the needs of the road
user. It is important to re-iterate, that the NMD applies not only to vehicular traffic, but
the needs of pedestrians and cyclists also.
The following sections highlight the actions that Staffordshire County Council will
undertake, influence, and facilitate over the course of the LTP.
I7
II
3.1 Addressing the Key Issues
Actions
National research has been undertaken into the causes of congestion and
found that it could be broadly attributed as follows:
•
•
•
24% results from incidents that occur on the highway network
10% is caused by planned activities such as road works or streetworks
66% results from volume based congestion
Staffordshire County Council’s actions are broken down below against these
specific areas which assists in targeting actions against each.
Unplanned event/incident management
Situation:
Unplanned or unforeseen events such as traffic accidents, terrorism, serious
fires or abnormally severe weather conditions can occur anywhere and at any
time. Because it is impossible to predict the timing, the location or the severity
of such incidents, it is extremely difficult to make finite plans to deal with them.
Actions:
o
The Council will, in consultation with the emergency services, Highways
Agency and neighbouring highway authorities, investigate and put in
place a series of contingency options and diversion routes. The
Council will ensure that, wherever possible, these plans do not
exacerbate the current situation in urban areas for an unduly long
period of time.
Ongoing
during
LTP
o
The Council will work with Staffordshire Police to set up a Local Traffic
Control Centre. This will join together the information gathering
capabilities and facilitate effective actions by both parties in a timely
manner.
During LTP
period
o
Options for the improvement of information dissemination to the public
and other highway stakeholders will be considered and implemented,
this could include additional and reciprocal use of VMS facilities and
better and more accurate links with the media.
During LTP
period
o
Emergency response capabilities will be considered.
During LTP
period
Planned Activities
Situation:
When works by the Highway Authority, Statutory Undertakers or others are to
I8
II
be undertaken on the highway, there is usually the opportunity to plan these
works in advance in order that the impact on the travelling public is minimised.
Timescales for planning works vary, ranging from major works with long lead-in
periods to minor reactive works with days or even hours notice. Some works
are genuine emergencies and would be treated in the same way as unplanned
incidents.
Delays from works activities purportedly account for 10% of delays to the
travelling public and the TMA focuses highway authorities on addressing the
causes of congestion from planned works. Controls on Statutory Undertakers
have existed under the New Roads and Street Works Act since 1991, but the
TMA introduces the need for highway authority works to comply with the same
regime as other undertakers for notifications and booking of road space to
undertake their activities. Staffordshire County Council has embodied the
principle of “parity” within its organisational structure and an independent
Network Management Unit has been established (as discussed in Section 2) to
holistically control all activities on the highway network in Staffordshire and
interface with all other stakeholders.
Associated highway activities in the form of skips, scaffolds, hoardings, access
crossings, planned events, etc. will also be included within the processes
managed by the Network Management Unit.
Staffordshire County Council already has a good reputation regionally for
operating robust planning and co-ordination activities, and we are looking to
build on this through improving external partnership working with undertakers
and internal linkages with our Staffordshire Highways Area Teams and a new
Joint Planning Unit which has been instigated under a recent re-structure to
plan and programme all works and undertake TMA compliant noticing.
A number of key actions are required by Staffordshire County Council over the
LTP period.
Actions:
o
Staffordshire Highways (Staffordshire County Council’s highway
delivery partnership) to comply with the full TMA compliant
Notification regime (to achieve parity with utilities)
April 2007
o
Staffordshire County Council to undertake detailed process
mapping and business case analysis for all highway control
processes, and introduce robust procedures to ensure compliance,
control, and viability
April 2007
o
Network Management Unit to build capabilities in proactive coordination of planned activities through:
During LTP
period
Improved quarterly co-ordination
Partnership working with undertakers of works to improve
I9
II
forward and construction planning
Improved day to day co-ordination of minor and reactive
activities
Robust inspection regimes with dedicated Network Inspectors
with main aim of tackling the causes of congestion
Introducing enforcement techniques provided by the TMA
(FPNs / over-run charging regimes, etc.)
Considering the need for and implementation of a Staffordshirewide or regional Permit Scheme
Improved information management
Linkages with planning authorities to improve integration with
developer promoted land-use
Encouraging innovative working practices and methods of
construction that do not result in highway occupation
o
Promoting and improving cross-boundary linkages with neighbouring
authorities and sharing information
2007
o
Working with all other highway stakeholders (District / Borough
Councils, Emergency Services, Highways Agency, National and
Regional Control Centres, etc) to improve joint adherence to the
NMD
2008
o
Improved dissemination of information on planned activities to the
public
During LTP
period
o
Introducing and refining performance management regimes to
measure the impact of actions on Staffordshire’s highway network
During LTP
period
Volume based congestion management
Situation:
The nature and severity of congestion will depend on a variety of factors
including duration, geographical spread, and source.
As a result, the
measures to tackle congestion will vary significantly. Below are a number of
the direct measures that the Network Management Unit will introduce, and
following is a synopsis of other actions to be undertaken by Staffordshire
County Council in pursuit of the broader aims of the LTP.
I10
II
Actions:
Staffordshire County Council will work to reduce the impact of congestion by:
o
Implementing Decriminalised Parking Enforcement (DPE) in
Staffordshire; focusing on parking enforcement on main roads and key
junctions.
o
Analysing and encouraging the undertaking of physical measures to
relieve the network of congestion hotspots.
o
Utilising and extending the use of technology (area wide linked signal
control systems (UTMC), information systems and intelligent transport
systems (ITS)).
o
Regularly maintaining and reviewing traffic management infrastructure
(signs, loops and signal timings).
o
Carrying out a review of the road hierarchy by level of use and function
(both current and intended), and continuing to monitor and review on a
regular basis.
During LTP
period
Influencing demand
Situation:
A high proportion of the population travel to work by car even though
some of their journeys are short. Statistics show that 66% of journeys
to work are less than 5 km and 53% are less than 2 km. There is
significant scope for many of these journeys to be made by more
sustainable alternatives such as public transport, walking or cycling.
Actions:
Staffordshire County Council willo Provide better facilities for pedestrians and cyclists.
o Promote the use of public transport through the development of
Public Transport Partnerships, by improving publicity, ticketing
etc;
During LTP
period
o Provide better facilities for bus operators, which would help to
improve bus reliability, such as ‘bus only’ lanes.
o Develop a Park and Ride facility for the West Midlands.
o Promote car sharing and other TravelWise initiatives.
I11
II
o Encourage more travel by rail.
Integrating land use and Transport Planning
Situation:
The location of employment sites and other key services has a dramatic
impact on travel patterns and consequently congestion. The location of
services influences need, mode, and time of travel.
Actions:
o Staffordshire County Council will work with District and Borough During LTP
Councils to utilise land-use planning as a tool for ensuring that period
developments, which generate traffic movements, are situated
in appropriate and sustainable locations.
Parking
Situation:
The management of on-street and off-street car parking can make a
significant contribution to tackling urban congestion, especially as the
Police are currently only able to provide a limited level of enforcement.
Restricting the number of parking spaces, the availability of long-term
parking, and the price of parking can have a positive effect on traffic
volumes if it is accompanied by adequate alternative provision.
In Staffordshire, the District and Borough Councils are generally
responsible for car parking provision.
Actions:
Staffordshire County Council will:
o Work closely with the District Councils in consideration of car
parking provision as a method of urban traffic management.
o Make application to Department for Transport to commence DPE
in selected areas.
o Develop and manage a parking strategy (quantity, availability,
and price).
o Consider charging policies having monitored the schemes in
London and Durham (congestion charging, workplace parking
levy).
I12
From
August 07
From
06
May
During LTP
period
During LTP
period
II
o Carry out a review of all parking prohibition Traffic Regulation
Orders throughout the County. This will be carried out prior to the
implementation of DPE.
Feb 06-Aug
07
Moving Traffic offences
Situation:
Congestion is frequently caused by the contravention of Traffic
Regulation Orders. The powers of enforcement of these Orders rest at
present with the Police. It is not possible for the Police to adequately
monitor every location where such Orders exist.
Actions:
Staffordshire County Council will:
o Apply to carry out enforcement of selected moving traffic offences
after successful application for DPE.
Nov 06
o Develop a programme of targeted enforcement campaigns in
partnership with Staffordshire Police and District and Borough
Councils. The enforcement will be of certain moving traffic
offences - such as infringement of yellow box junctions, the illegal
use of ‘bus only’ lanes, and parking on zig-zag lines on pedestrian
crossing approaches.
During LTP
period
Speed Management
Situation:
Influencing the thoughts and values of drivers is an essential element of
Staffordshire County Council’s Road Safety Strategy - ‘Creating Safer
Roads’.
Actions:
Staffordshire County Council will:o Continue to provide targeted driver training courses such as Ongoing in
Speed Awareness and National Driver Improvement Courses LTP period
which are offered as an alternative to prosecution. These are
designed to improve drivers’ observational and hazard perception
skills.
I13
II
o Tackle excessive and inappropriate speed using a raft of
measures, delivered in partnership with key stakeholders,
including the deployment of both static and mobile safety
cameras.
o Support Staffordshire Police in the enforcement of road traffic
laws, especially those relating to speeding, drink/drug driving, and
the wearing of seat belts.
o Support schemes such as Community Speed Watch. Many of
these initiatives are co-ordinated through County’s various districtwide Community and Road Safety Task Groups.
o Carry out a speed limit review on all ‘A’ and ‘B’ Class roads in the
County to ensure that speed limits and road designs are
appropriate for local conditions.
o Develop a Speed Management Policy, which will be linked to the
review of the road hierarchy. The Speed Management Policy will
set out in more detail what Staffordshire County Council (together
with Staffordshire Police and others) will do to manage vehicle
speeds. It is likely that the Policy will include measures to:
I14
ensure the best use of available resources by
adopting an intelligence-led approach to identify and
address accidents hotspots.
promote and implement lower speed limits where
there is a potential to reduce the number and
severity of road accidents.
encourage and support local communities to
introduce community-funded speed management
initiatives, such as Community Speed Watch.
identify potential, and implement agreed fixed and
mobile speed camera sites, particularly at areas
prone to speeding.
identify and implement new locations for traffic
calming schemes.
participate in national campaigns aimed at conveying
the message that speed kills.
arrange and promote local activities and events to
raise awareness of the dangers of speed.
II
3.2 Over-arching Network Management Issues
In order to undertake a number of the actions listed above, Staffordshire
County Council has to set principles for how the network data will be managed
to facilitate the efficient operations for planning and controlling the network.
The fundamental start point is an accurate inventory of the highway network
which is required to be referenced and disseminated in the National Street
Gazetteer (NSG) format. Staffordshire’s highway network and all attributed
data is currently under review with the aim of having a complete and up-to-date
highway inventory by summer 2007. Processes are also being put in place to
maintain this inventory data.
2007
This information will be the foundation on which all other highway information
and processes will be built.
The review is currently underway and will provide attributes about every road
on the highway network as follows:
road type/classification
indicative traffic flow
indicative proportion of HCVs/HGVs
traffic/cycle/pedestrian category
traffic sensitivity
maintenance category
route used by emergency services
bus route
abnormal load route
local issues, e.g. rat-run, school locations, motorway or trunk road
diversionary routes, traffic calming, seasonal routes, major or minor event
locations, etc.
TRO information
Additional Street Data (ASD) as defined under NRSWA
This information will also be disseminated via Staffordshire County Council’s
website in order that any interested highway stakeholder can access the data
as necessary.
In addition, the data will be the basis for displaying operational information e.g.
current or planned road or street works, all locations where temporary traffic
controls are in use, locations of skips/scaffold/ hoardings etc. Information
about incidents and their affect on the network will also be available once the
Local Traffic Control Centre is in place with the police, and linked with Regional
and National Traffic Control Centres to ensure comprehensive and accurate
information is available.
Initiatives such as EMPReSS (which is an internet site for displaying crossboundary information of highway works of local authorities) may be utilised to
ensure a consistent approach to information dissemination. This will help to
promote regional and national consistency in practices. It is recognised that
I15
II
information and access to it, is an essential tool in supporting transport choice.
This may be in the form of choice of mode, or which route to best undertake a
journey.
Wider dissemination of information about the operation of the network will need
to be considered. Staffordshire County Council will draw up a dissemination
strategy by 2008 which will consider all options and outline recommended
actions for the publicity and dissemination of network operation and
management information in all forms.
2008
3.3 Working with key stakeholders
In order to fulfil the NMD, Staffordshire County Council will need to work
closely with a series of key partners, both within and beyond the County
boundary. The Council’s partners will include:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
All internal Staffordshire County Council Directorates
Staffordshire Police
Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service
Staffordshire Ambulance Service
National and Regional Traffic Control Centres
Highways Agency.
Neighbouring County or Unitary Councils
Borough and District Councils
Passenger Transport Operators
Casualty Reduction Partnership members
Utility Companies
Other Undertakers, e.g. developers, etc.
The Public
Stakeholder forums will be set up in 2006/07 with the above to:
Initially raise awareness to the requirements of the TMA
Inform stakeholders of the actions Staffordshire County Council have taken
to date
Define roles that stakeholders have to play
Consider network management options
To set actions to implement the TMA and NMD
To set priorities and an implementation programme
To set metrics against the achievement of actions
To monitor and report on successes / failures
To promote continuous improvement in fulfilling the duties of the Act
Work has already been undertaken in 2005 on awareness raising and
promoting the actions of Development Services Directorate. This initial work
needs to be expanded further into the wider organisation of Staffordshire
County Council and other stakeholder organisations.
Other forums exist with a number of the key stakeholders that can be
I16
)
)
)
)
)
) Mid 2007
)
)
)
)
II
expanded further:
Internal Stakeholders – Within Staffordshire County Council the Transport
Planning and Strategy Unit has a key role to play in addressing future
congestion issues and the Traffic Manager’s team will be influencing the work
of the Unit in line with the policy objectives of this NMP.
Staffordshire’s three Highway Maintenance Area Teams (North, East and
West) are required to operate as an undertaker and access the highway under
the same terms as a utility company, including notifying of all highway
occupation. This is being enabled through business process re-engineering
which has been on-going since 2005. The Network Management Unit will work
closely in monthly forums and through day-to-day contact with the Joint
Planning Unit of Staffordshire Highways, who programme all works and will be
responsible for the submission of Notices to the NMU.
Emergency Services – Liaison Meetings with West Mercia Police and other
emergency services, working arrangements in place with Staffordshire Police
Traffic Group, Community Forums, West Midlands Traffic Operations Regional
Group (WM TORG)
National Traffic Control Centre – Detailed Local Operating Agreement
(DLOA) in place with Traffic information Systems to provide reciprocal
information about networks, WM TORG
Highways Agency – Liaison Meetings with Highways Agency and their
agents, Quarterly Co-ordination Meetings, WM TORG
Neighbouring Authorities – Various cross-boundary working and regional
groups, specifically including Midlands Service Improvement Group, WM
TORG, West Midlands Highway Authorities and Utilities Committee (WM
Highway Authority and Utility Committee) and:
•
West Midlands (Shires and Unitaries) Traffic Managers Group [WM
(S&U) Traffic Management Group]:
•
This group is made up of Traffic Managers representing the following
authorities working together to share information and work together to
ensure that the broader aspects of the Network Management Duty are
met:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
City of Stoke-on-Trent Council
Herefordshire Council
Shropshire County Council
Staffordshire County Council
Telford and Wrekin Council.
Warwickshire County Council
Worcestershire County Council
The WM (S&U) TMG has agreed the following statement:
I17
II
We have agreed to operate together with an initial Mission Statement:
“To improve the West Midlands regional approach to fulfilling
the Network Management Duty”
To do this, we have already identified the initial areas which we will act
on or improve;
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Assist in guiding and shaping the role of the West Midlands
Traffic Operations Group.
Share best practice, and performance information, across the
members of the group to improve the approach to implementing
the Traffic Management Act 2004.
To provide regional consistency and develop agreed
frameworks to ensure the fulfilment of the Network
Management Duty.
To share information on the causes of congestion, and the
proposed solutions, and the setting of network hierarchies in
each authority.
To guide authority’s approaches to network resilience.
To share the information provided to the public through the
individual authority’s web site by providing hyperlinks.
To share information on how each authority is developing its
organisation, the role of Traffic Manager, to meet the new
demands of the Network Management Duty.
District/Borough Councils – Community Forums, Joint Member Boards, etc.
Passenger Transport Operators – frequent liaison meetings with PTO’s
senior management
Casualty Reduction Partnership – Safety Camera Partnership Board
Utility Companies – West Midlands Highway Authorities and Utilities
Committee, quarterly co-ordination meetings, ad-hoc planning meetings
It is essential to work with other authorities / agencies in the undertaking of the
NMD to achieve the complementary objective of ensuring expeditious
movement of traffic on other networks as well as ours.
Neighbouring authority working groups will be set-up to address how reciprocal
arrangements can be put in place to ensure that cross-boundary co-ordination
exists in an effective manner.
Staffordshire has twelve neighbouring authorities / agencies that we will be
forging close links with, as follows:
Highways Agency - running throughout Staffordshire with core motorway and
I18
II
Trunk Road including M6, M54, A38, A50, A500, A5
City of Stoke-on-Trent Council - surrounded by Staffordshire with a major
urban interface between Newcastle-under-Lyme
Shropshire County Council
Telford and Wrekin Council
Worcestershire County Council
Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council
Wolverhampton City Council
Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council
Warwickshire County Council
West Midlands Region
Mid-2007
Leicestershire County Council
Derbyshire County Council
Cheshire County Council
East Midlands Region
-
North West Region
I19
II
MEASURING
MEASURING
NETWORK
NETWORK
MANAGEMENT
MANAGEMENT
PERFORMANCE
PERFORMANCE
4.0
In order that the performance of Staffordshire County Council’s actions to optimise the
highway network can be monitored, it is necessary to determine measures by which to
judge successes or failures. For clarity in the context of this NMP, performance is to be
set against the three causes of congestion introduced in Section 3.1.
Unplanned Event/Incident Management
This is potentially the most difficult aspect of network performance to set metrics
against. At present highway authorities have not acted as network operators in the
sense that the NMD now prescribes and have consequently been lacking the essential
information upon which a performance indicator could be based.
With the introduction of a Local Traffic Control Centre, in the future the benefits of
working closely with the Police will allow greater access to key information on network
performance to instigate plans and measures that will assist in incident clear-up and
improved timely and accurate information dissemination.
Possible Performance Indicators:
(In UTC areas) Time taken for routine traffic plan to be restored after the
occurrence of a Category ‘A’ incident. Measured in hours – not possible to predict
a baseline target. [Category ‘A’ incident defined as one within the parameters that
would allow direct comparison e.g. motorway or trunk road closure]
Percentage of incidents where information is passed on to local radio within 30
minutes. Measured as percentage – possible target in post LTCC scenario would
be 90%
Percentage of strategic routes covered by Network Contingency Plans – Measured
as a percentage – possible target by end of LTP period 100%
The above are indicative indicators only at this stage. Further consideration of
measures would be developed as contingency frameworks and national practices
emerge in line with this new agenda.
Planned Activities
From the emerging secondary legislation of the TMA, there is the expanded
requirement for local traffic authorities to maintain detailed network registers of all
activities. Indications have been given by DfT that a ‘basket of performance indicators’
will be used nationally to monitor authorities’ performance.
The network register with its mapping interface will be a key tool in achieving coherent
co-ordination of activities on the highway network and will be a vital source of
information pertaining to performance.
I20
II
Possible Performance Indicators:
Average duration of works on Traffic Sensitive (TS) routes. Measured in days/km
of TS routes. [Measure of authority’s ability to minimise works on TS routes]
Numbers of Fixed Penalty Notices issued by authorities. Measured in Numbers /
length of network [Measure of an authority’s network enforcement and control]
Number of early starts allowed by authorities. Measure in Numbers / length of
network [Measure of an authority’s flexibility in planning and co-ordinating works]
Number of over-runs on Traffic Sensitive routes. Measure in days / km of TS
routes. [Measure of an authority’s network enforcement and control]
Percentage of works commencing on planned date. Measure in %. [Measure
success of advanced planning and co-ordination]
The above indicators could be automated indicators from authorities’ network registers.
Performance indicators, such as those above, would also be broken down for analysis
by undertakers such that patterns of poor performance could be identified and rectified,
with the aim of a partnership approach with each undertaker with a targeted action plan
for each to optimise performance.
It would also be necessary to compare undertakers of streetworks against the
performance of the works by Staffordshire County Council’s own contractors. This
would provide a direct means of comparison and supports the principles of parity
required by the TMA. It is the intention of Staffordshire County Council to operate a
performance culture with its own contractors where the performance indicators, under
the TMA, would be Operational Performance Indicators (OPI’s) linked to extensions
within the contract to provide significant motivation for the Council’s contractors to set
an example for all other undertakers to aspire to.
The above are suggested indicators only; Staffordshire County Council is keen to
develop the most useful set of indicators possible to assist in targeting our actions for
the benefit of Staffordshire’s road users.
Volume Based Congestion
In general terms, the performance and success of the Staffordshire County Council’s
Network Management Unit will be measured best by the general public in terms of
journey time reliability. In other words, if a journey to work, the shops, the local pub or
along any regularly travelled route normally takes twenty minutes, a longer journey time
would be most likely to give the impression that congestion was the cause.
Staffordshire County Council has invested in ITIS data (GPS tracked vehicle data) to
provide statistical means by which journey time information can be used to provide
year-on-year comparisons (or hopefully more frequent as the volume and quality of
data improves). A schedule of congestion black-spots has been targeted for the
undertaking of journey time reliability surveys.
This will also set baselines for expectation for the public. On certain routes they will be
able to anticipate how long their journey should reasonably take at certain times of day.
This will give the benchmark against which comparisons can be made to judge
I21
II
Staffordshire County Council’s successes on these corridors as a representation of the
overall success of the balanced measures being undertaken against all of the LTP’s
priorities.
ITIS information may also be a source of incident related congestion in the future.
There are currently no nationally recognised performance indicators against which to
measure congestion. Whilst there is a mandatory congestion indicator within the LTPs
of major urban centres in the UK, this does not apply to Staffordshire. Therefore,
Staffordshire County Council will await the emergence of a national policy but in the
meantime provide indicators that are meaningful and valid to the people of
Staffordshire.
In addition to the above, Staffordshire County Council will develop local indicators that
support the higher level national indicators that emerge. It is the Council’s intention to
have a full set of performance indicators in place by the end of 2007/08. Interim
indicators will exist as information management capabilities and national best practice
allow.
Staffordshire County Council will report annually on its performance against network
management and will instil a culture of continuous improvement.
I22
II
4.0 SUMMARY
5.0
This NMP outlines the key issues for Staffordshire County Council, and provides a
framework and many clear actions that are necessary to deliver an optimised and well
managed highway network.
Staffordshire County Council is focused on making the most of the opportunities
available under the TMA to achieve its aims.
In October 2005, DfT outlined the draft key elements of the Act that local authorities are
to be measured against in relation to the intervention criteria that would precede a
Traffic Director where an authority is seen to be failing to meet its responsibilities under
the Act. For ease of reference, these key criteria are summarised below with
references to the sections of the NMP that satisfy the criteria outlined.
I23
II
Draft Key Intervention Criteria
Criteria
1. Setting objectives, local indicators and
monitoring
I24
NMP Reference
Objectives
Section 2.0 P-4
Section 3.0 P-7,8
Local Indicators
and Monitoring
Section 4.0 P-21,22,23
2. Setting up an appropriate
management structure
Section 2.0 P-4,5
3. Having a permanent Traffic Manager
appointed
Section 2.0 P-4,5,6
4. Co-ordinating and planning works and
known events
Section 3.1 P-10,11
5. Ensuring parity with utility companies
Section 2.0 P-4
Section 3.1 P-10
Section 4.0 P- 22
6. Contingency Planning for unknown
events
Section 3.1 P-9
Section 4.0 P-21
7. Working with all Stakeholders –
Internal and External
Section 3.3 P-17,18,19,20
8. Tackling congestion in step with
national policy
Section 3.1 P9,10,11,12,13,14,15
9. Minimising disruption on different
networks
Section 3.2 P-16,17
Section 3.3 P-18,19,20
10. Providing information needs
Section 3.2 P-16,17