Overall strategy
Wirral Council, have significantly developed our approach to asset management in highways in recent years, including introducing measures to implement the Well-Managed Highway Infrastructure code of practice. As a result, we have been able to maximise and secure additional funding and, continue successfully defending claims. Despite making substantial progress in recent years, we recognise we are in an increasingly challenging environment, with deteriorating assets, increasing traffic volumes and uncertainty around future funding.
We have developed our comprehensive Highway Infrastructure Asset Management Plan (HIAMP) and this is a forward-looking document that sets out how asset management contributes to achieving strategic outcomes, including environmental. This describes how we manage our assets, make decisions based on risk and explains what we know about current and predicted asset condition. It also sets out how we prioritise schemes into a forward works programme and supports the use of sustainable modes of transport and how we meet our statutory obligations.
Wirral’s HIAM plan seeks to highlight the importance of consistency of funding and approach over that longer period, to enable us to deliver a more efficient service with better condition outcomes.
Innovation and efficiency
Wirral has increased the use of surface treatments to treat any roads that need repairs and this has been focused on unclassified roads to improve the network condition and slow down the deterioration of the network.
We have recently introduced a new process to our maintenance programme to help look after our roads. Thermal repairs is a process used to improve areas of the road network that are damaged. The process re-uses existing material from the road minimising the need for importing new material, single plant, no over banding, and seamed into existing surface, low noise and zero waste. This will also provide significant operational environmental savings.
We have also used reduced temperature asphalt (RTA) ranging from 110°C to 130°C, whereas traditional hot-mixed asphalts require 140°C to 180°C for production. This difference might seem minimal, but the impact on energy savings and emissions is significant. When produced at lower temperatures, RTA demands less energy, leading to lower fuel consumption and fewer CO₂ emissions.
Wirral also has a high number of concrete roads, which have been given thin overlays. As a council, we are now removing the overlay, restoring the concrete roads and sealing the joints. This process is called Concrete rejuvenation and helps to minimise maintenance costs as potholes not form in this surface.
We are continually adding to the methods and ways that we carry out maintenance across the borough and have introduced from this year, thermal patching, focusing on junction areas, so removing future reactive patching.
We plan to trial the use of drones for the inspection of a small number of bridges and culverts, where access is difficult, dangerous and expensive.
Specific plans for 2025 to 2026
Subject to weather conditions, in 2025/6, we plan to:
- focus for 2025 -2026 will be on classified C roads and continuous improvements to unclassified network
- continue to keep reactive works at a steady state whilst improving the percentage of the network we are surface treating
- resurface 87 km of carriageway
- improve 44 km footways
- repair the following structures:
- Leasowe Road Bridge – Concrete repairs to deck soffit and cantilever
- Moreton Road Bridge – Replacement of bridge deck expansion joints, re-waterproofing and resurfacing of bridge deck and the approaches
- Raby Vale Retaining Wall – Partial reconstruction of sandstone retaining wall and vegetation clearance
- Kings Parade Subway Concrete Repairs – Concrete repairs to PCC box sections, installation of galvanic anodes and replacement joint sealant
- Bidston Moss Viaduct – Replacement of 4 bridge expansion joints
- fill an estimated 700 potholes subject to weather conditions