IoW Council awarded £364.6m funding
The scheme that will bring unprecedented investment to dramatically improve the Isle of Wight's highway infrastructure has been boosted by confirmation that the Government will allocate £364.6 million of free grant to the project.
The news has been warmly welcomed by the IoW Council who have in recent months been waiting official approval of its outline business case for the Highways Private Finance Initiative. The £364.6 million announced is some £40 million more than the sum set aside by the Government when it approved the council's initial expression of interest and will enable more Island services and amenities to be upgraded as part of the PFI.
The council will now move ahead with securing a commercial partner for what is probably the largest engineering project ever undertaken on the Island. Under the PFI, all 803km of Island's public road network will be rebuilt or resurfaced as will every pavement, kerb and cycleway. Most of this work will be done in the first seven years to raise the network to the required high standard and the entire network will then be maintained to that high standard over the remaining years of the 25-year project.
In addition, the PFI will cover all bridges, retaining walls and other structures on the highway network. It includes the replacement and maintenance of all traffic signals and the Island's 12,068 street lights and columns. Also included is all street furniture and illuminated bollards as well as the CCTV network and control room which could also remotely operate street lighting both as a security and energy saving measure.
The PFI will incorporate all verge cutting and weed control, street cleansing and gulley and ditch clearance as well as maintenance of car parks and parking meters both on and off-street . It will include callout arrangements for fallen trees and flooding and the enforcement of notices in respect of overhanging hedges and abandoned vehicles.
The project will also include the rebuilding of Bouldnor Road, Yarmouth. However the council will retain several key functions besides the overall responsibility of making sure the work is carried out to the terms of the contract. These functions include road safety and education, school crossing patrols and parking enforcements.
Welcoming the news, Stuart Love, IW Council Strategic Director for Environment and the Economy said: “We know that residents want to see a dramatic improvement in the quality of our roads and the PFI grant means we will receive the necessary investment to make that real difference. “Our task now is to make sure that we also use the PFI funding to achieve as many spin-off benefits in terms of stimulating the local economy and enhancing job and career prospects for Island residents. The positive implications of this project for the wider Island economy are massive and we will continue to liaise with our partners in industry to maximise these.”
“From a council point of view, it is pleasing that the outline business case prepared by our PFI team has been described as an exemplar model by Government assessors.” Cllr Edward Giles, IW Council cabinet member for environment and transport, said: “The effect the recent freezing weather has had further emphasises the need for major investment in our highway infrastructure. It is really good news that Government has given such support for our outline business case. It also shows that the council is able to make a real difference by drawing down such a significant amount of inward investment. As a result the standard of our roads network will be raised to unprecedented levels and the wider Island economy also stands to benefit from real and substantial opportunity.”
Under the PFI, the council will be required to match the Government investment to the tune of £8.3 million a year which is about the same as it currently invests in the services that will come under the PFI.
Today's announcement follows months of discussions between Government officials and the council's PFI team during which the outline business case was refined. The biggest change has been the removal of most of the rights of way network from the PFI. This is primarily because responsibility for rights of way lies with DEFRA when the highways PFI is the responsibility of the Department for Transport.
The council's PFI team is however currently working to integrate the upgrading of the rights of way network around the PFI activity. The Isle of Wight Chamber of Commerce, Tourism and Industry welcomed the announcement. Chief Executive Kevin Smith said: “This is fantastic news both for all Island road users and also for business because an engineering project of this scale brings with it huge opportunities for local industry across many sectors. Having a high quality transport infrastructure is also an important consideration for business seeking to locate here. We will now work with local businesses and our partner organisations to maximise the opportunities for local businesses. The Island businesses are best placed to capitalise on this unprecedented level of investment that the council has been successful in attracting. Over the 25 year period, the total investment from this PFI will exceed the £1bn mark and we want make sure we make best use of this for the regeneration of the Island by retaining much of this within the Island.”
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Click to go to the DfT press release
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