New contracts for better road maintenance in North Shore City

North Shore City Council has changed the way it awards road maintenance contracts, to ensure a better service for ratepayers.

"We have decided to split the city into two areas, and award one contract for the area east of the motorway, and another for the west," North Shore City's infrastructure and environment committee chairperson, Tony Barker, says.

"The new contracts will also specify to contractors exactly the level of performance we expect from them, and how that will be measured."

Activities covered by each three- to five-year contract include:
* General road maintenance, such as repairing potholes;
* Maintenance and renewal of footpaths, kerbs and channels and signs;
* Street cleaning;
* Weed control;
* Road resealing;
* Pavement rehabilitation (replacing a worn-out section of road).

The contracts do not include street lighting maintenance, road marking, commercial area cleaning, bridge and retaining wall renewal, berm mowing and tree trimming, or the maintenance of traffic signals, which all require specialist expertise and equipment.

"The aim of bundling so many different activities into one contract is to have better co-ordination, so different services and projects don't conflict, and improve efficiency," Tony Barker says.

"The emphasis in the new contracts is on what gets done, rather than how it gets done, which encourages the contractors to be innovative.

"Contractors will now have to take more responsibility for getting the job done, and we will be measuring their performance.

"It all adds up to a better deal, and a better standard of maintenance, for ratepayers."

The council is expected to award the contracts after receiving a tender evaluation at the April council meeting.

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