Transport Scotland’s Road Asset Management Plan (RAMP) was published in November 2007.
RAMP is a key document to keep road users informed about the agency’s management and maintenance practices and activities on Scotland’s trunk road network. It will be an integral part of the agency’s Asset Management Improvement Programme.
Scotland’s trunk road network is used daily by thousands of people who expect to travel safely with minimum delay on roads that are in good condition. The network itself has an asset value of £12 billion so it is vital it is not only well maintained for road users but for economic, social and environmental reasons.
The management and maintenance of this important asset is the responsibility of Transport Scotland’s Trunk Roads: Network Management Directorate (TR:NM), supported by its Operating Companies. For road users the most visible part of the maintenance process is the roadworks which are necessary to deliver a safer and more reliable journey but can themselves create delays in the short-term.
To balance the long-term need to keep the network maintained with the short-term need for roadworks TR:NM introduced a 3-year Asset Management Improvement Programme in 2006. The Programme will enhance current practices and place Transport Scotland at the forefront of UK and international practice in road management.
Integral to the Programme is the drive for continual improvement in all aspects of Transport Scotland’s management practices for the trunk road network. This will include:
- systematically reviewing and updating our asset management practices based on feedback received and sought from road users, our staff and our suppliers
- benchmarking Transport Scotland against similar infrastructure organisations to identify where our current practices can be improved
- developing our knowledge of new materials and maintenance techniques that may be suitable for use on the trunk road network
- critically reviewing the information we hold about the trunk road network, identifying new information for collection and information that is no longer required.
Central to the Asset Management Improvement Programme is the creation of a Road Asset Management Plan (RAMP). The Plan sets out what Transport Scotland aim to achieve with the trunk road network, and the investment plan and work programmes required to support this. It will be updated in the summer of 2009, or more frequently if required, to highlight the benefits realised through the Programme. The Plan will be complementary to the agency’s Strategic Road Safety Plan and the Traffic Scotland Improvement Strategy.
The updated RAMP will be informed by the results of a survey of road users and other interested parties undertaken early in 2007 on the level of service they expect from the trunk road network on matters such as road condition, winter maintenance, journey reliability or lighting provision. Further surveys will keep the Plan dynamic to help develop the agency’s practices and meet road users’ needs.
You too can contribute by sending your views on Transport Scotland’s management of Scotland’s trunk road network headed ‘Road Asset Management Plan’ to info@transportscotland.gsi.gov.uk
