Return to Agenda

Division(s): All


ITEM EX7

EXECUTIVE – 28 OCTOBER 2003

TRANSPORT CAPITAL PROGRAMME 2003/04 TO 2005/06

Report by Assistant Director (Highway Management)

Introduction

  1. The main purpose of this report is to provide an update on the 2003/04 programme approved by the Executive on 15 April 2003 and to consider the implications on the programme of making a contribution to balances. It also seeks approval to "kick start" the 2004/05 programme by agreeing the core schemes for which design briefs can be issued early.

  2. This report also discusses the overall priorities for the Transport Capital Programme up to and including 2005/06 and the scope to change those priorities.

    3. Background

  3. The overall balance of the approved 5 year programme (2001/2006) is broadly in line with the bid originally included in the Local Transport Plan (LTP), other than that a greater priority has been given to Single Capital Pot (SCP) expenditure on maintenance to reflect the administration’s strategic priorities. This has been helped by the availability of other sources of funding to support the overall programme. Progress on the delivery of the LTP programme has been fully reported to the Government, and members, through the Annual Progress Reports (APRs).

  4. The approved 2003/04 programme comprises over 340 schemes to a total value of £28.251m. This was made up from £19.927m Single Capital Pot (SCP) allocation from the Government, over £3.5m of developer funds, £750k from On-Street Parking Surpluses (OSPS) and, importantly, £2m of "over-programming" to allow for some slippage in the programme and to ensure all the SCP allocation is spent. Annex 1 shows the detailed allocations to each of the main budget headings and the split between the various funding sources.

  5. With a programme of this size and complexity it is inevitable that the unforeseen will occur and that changes to the detail of the programme will need to be made. Consultation provides both an opportunity and a reason to make changes, external influences change and detailed investigations bring to light factors which need to be taken into account. The overall programming and financial implications of a multitude of issues must be constantly monitored and managed.

    6. Financial Constraints

  6. The Council’s budget for 2002/03 assumed a contribution to the Budget Reserve by capitalising £1m of the structural highway maintenance budget. However, because of an overspend on the rest of the Transport Capital Programme, the proposed revenue/capital switch could not be made and the shortfall had to be met temporarily from balances. In order to allow the shortfall in balances to be reinstated the revenue/capital switch would have to be made in 2003/04. This £1m contribution along with £2m contributed in 2001/02 is due to be returned to the Transport Capital Programme in equal instalments over the next two years to ensure that the full credit approval is used over the term of the LTP.

  7. The consequences of this drop in the capital sum available are significant in relation to the schemes that can be started in 2003/04 and are of particular concern to our consultant and contractor for whom there are significant operational implications.

  8. The SCP allocation must be spent in full by the end of March 2004 or it will be lost. It is therefore imperative that sufficient flexibility is retained in managing the various funding sources in the programme between now and year end. Of the other sources, developer contributions, whose availability is dependent on the terms of individual planning agreements as well as on the pace of development, are perhaps the least prescriptive in their application. There is generally some degree of flexibility in the allocation of this funding to specific schemes and in the timing of the expenditure. It can therefore be used in a limited way to balance expenditure between funding sources.

  9. OSPS as at 1 April 2003 was £1.114m. First call on this surplus is the operating cost of the Park and Rides. This is estimated to out-turn at £365k for the year, of which £150k will be funded from the revenue budget and £215k from OSPS. Of the remaining £885k, £60k is allocated to cover the advance design of the proposed upgrade to the Thornhill Park and Ride and £585k is allocated to cover outstanding costs on the Water Eaton and Thornhill Park and Rides. This leaves £254k to fund ITS schemes which meet the conditions for use of OSPS.

    10. The Current Programme

  10. For a number of reasons, not least being the need to repay the £1m to balances, the full programme as presented to Executive in April cannot now be pursued this financial year.

  11. When the 2003/04 programme was put forward for approval in April, performance over recent years suggested that slippage would delay some 10 percent of the schemes included. The £2m "over programming" was introduced to allow for this. At the same time efforts were concentrated on improving service delivery through the better application of programme and project management. Service delivery has improved and the degree of slippage which has occurred is less than that envisaged. As a consequence some schemes which could have been built this year will have to be carried over into 2004/05.

  12. The cost of implementing schemes has risen in general and a number of projects are individually exerting a significant influence on the programme. Annex 4 provides a more detailed account of these.

  13. The scale of the remaining financial commitment to schemes in the 2002/03 programme carried over into the current year was not fully anticipated and in some cases costs are still being incurred.

  14. In short there are insufficient funds to support the agreed 2003/04 programme and the current position is as shown in summary in Annex 2 and in detail in Annex 3.

  15. Annex 3 in particular shows progress against individual schemes, indicating which schemes are expected to be completed this financial year, which schemes are likely to start this year and be completed in 2004/05 and which schemes will need to be carried forward to be implemented as part of the 2004/05 programme.

  16. Also identified in Annex 3 is the effect on the programme of not making the £1m contribution to reserves should the Executive choose this option.

    17. 2004/05 Programme

  17. The scope for influencing the 2004/05 programme is constrained by the requirements for assessment, consultation, design, statutory procedures and construction. It is unlikely that any scheme of significance that has not already been considered could now be included in the 2004/05 programme. There are also strong public expectations, particularly in the Integrated Transport Strategy (ITS) programme, where three-year provisional programmes in the ITS towns have already been agreed by some of the Steering Groups.

  18. In order to ensure a prompt start on the design and implementation of the core schemes in the 2004/05 programme we are seeking approval for the early commencement of design and consultation on the range of schemes listed in Annex 5 to allow our consultant to commit resources. This list, coupled with the schemes carried forward from the current financial year, would make up about two thirds of the 2004/05 Transport Capital Programme.

  19. This approach brings several advantages. Firstly, it increases the chances of improving our overall scheme delivery, due to work taking place in summer months when the weather is more favourable. Secondly, it enables our consultants and contractors to spread work more evenly through the financial year, improving their performance. Thirdly, it increases the certainty of spending all the allocated SCP on the programme originally agreed, rather than needing to redistribute the SCP to other schemes merely to ensure a fast spend towards the end of the year.

    20. Scope for Change - 2005/06 on

  20. The Executive will have the opportunity of reviewing the allocations for the main budget areas for 2004/05 and 2005/06 in March 2004 after the 2004/05 settlement is known. (The currently anticipated SCP allocations for these years are set out in Annex 6) The opportunity for changing the priorities in 2005/06 is still available; but mainly relates to altering the balance of funding between the six main budget headings and the choice of the minor schemes selected for inclusion in the relevant programmes.

  21. We will not be recommending making any really major shifts in the allocation of resources between the various transport programmes in 2005/06. This is for two reasons. Firstly, the Government will be assessing our next LTP in terms of our performance in delivering the policies and targets that we set out in the first LTP; and secondly, the development of the 2006/2011 LTP is about to start. Extensive public consultation is being planned on both policy changes and priorities. Any significant shift in resources made while this consultation is in progress could give the appearance that the consultation was not meaningful.

    22. Developing the Future Programme

  22. The development of the second LTP (for 2006-11) will provide a real opportunity for the Executive to review its policies and set out a new and ambitious programme for transport investment up to, and to some extent beyond, 2011. The transport programme is integral to the Council achieving its Strategic Objectives and to supporting the emerging Structure Plan and Regional Spatial and Transport Strategies, as well as the investment plans of the Highways Agency and Strategic Rail Authority. It would therefore not be unrealistic to consider bidding for a 5 year Government funded programme of perhaps £150m (compared with a £90m bid in 2000) and to include several major schemes identified through the Transport Networks Review. With developer funds the overall transport capital programme could well amount to £40m p.a.

  23. If there are to be any major scheme bids included in the 2006-11 LTP it is essential that these have been progressed to the preferred route stage before the LTP is submitted in July 2005. This feasibility work, which cannot be charged to capital, will need to be commissioned from the existing transport planning term consultancy; but significant additional revenue resources will be required from 2004/05 to fund this and the other transport planning work. A revenue budget pressure of £250,000 p.a. has therefore been included in the Directorate’s Expenditure Proposals for 2004/05 to 2007/08 so that this issue can be addressed in the budget debate.

    24. Financial and Staff Implications

  24. The financial implications are as set out in the report. Assessment, promotion and design of schemes in the programme will be carried out by a combination of existing staff and term consultants contracted to the County Council. The County Council’s transport aspirations as set out in the Local Transport Plan require an increasing level of commitment from both client and consultant if they are to be met. This exerts a pressure on the Capital and Revenue budgets.

    25. Conclusions

  25. If the aspirations of the County Council and of the public in relation to the 2003/04 Transport Capital Programme are to be realised and if we are to avoid seriously compromising the commercial interests of our partners, we would recommend the Executive not to take payment of the £1m contribution to balances. In considering the implications of taking this course of action the Executive will no doubt wish to seek the advice of the Head of Finance regarding the effect of this on the County Council’s overall position.

    26. RECOMMENDATIONS

  26. The Executive is RECOMMENDED to:

          1. note progress on delivery of the 2003/04 programme to date;

          2. decide if the planned contribution to reserves is required in 2003/04;

          3. endorse the changes to the programme for the remainder of the year and the carrying forward of schemes into 2004/05 in the light of their decision on (b);

          4. approve the commencement of design for the schemes listed in Annex 5; and

          5. acknowledge the potential revenue consequences of the future Transport Capital Programme.

RICHARD DIX
Assistant Director (Highway Management)

Background Papers: Nil

Contact Officers:
Richard Dix Tel. 01865 815663
Brian Fell Tel. 01865 815083

October 2003

Return to TOP