North Burnett Regional Council Takes a New Approach to Road Service Delivery Darren Shepherd, Shepherd

Abstract

The impending retirement of experienced planning and supervisory staff that would result in the loss of valuable practical know-how, was the catalyst for North Burnett Regional Council to employ a more scientific approach to future works programming. Over a six-month period, Council undertook a comprehensive review of its Road Service Delivery to develop a practical and affordable approach to future maintenance and renewal programs. By using the knowledge held within the organisation by long-standing staff as well as the expertise and tools of consulting engineering firm Shepherd, Council developed practical service levels that are sustainable within current funding levels. A collaborative approach and the ability to visually demonstrate various scenarios has resulted in positive acceptance across the organisation, from supervisors through to councillors. The major steps of the Road Service Delivery Review included: • Council staff completed a road network survey, using Shepherd’s Road Asset Condition Assessment System (RACAS) equipment, taking HD images, GPS, IRI and Visual Defects data every 10m; • Shepherd’s consulting engineers analysed the surveyed data and modelled and benchmarked the practical service levels for the major asset classes of sealed surface, pavement and unsealed pavements in line with the practical experience of Council’s Supervisor; • Shepherd worked with Council staff to prove out the service level interventions to get an agreed metric for what was considered the road intervention level for engaging future works; • Results were presented to the Executive Team and Councillors’ with good buy in of the process; • The new approach has been documented in Council’s new Asset Management Plan and future works are now programmed using this approach; and • Council has leased a RACAS unit and will continue to use the equipment to measure the agreed metrics for determined maintenance and renewal works.