Description
Since April 2009, Amey has worked in partnership with Central Bedfordshire Council and Bedford Borough Council in a unified team known as “Bedfordshire Highways,”delivering one of the UK’s first Managing Agent Contractor (MAC) contracts.
This involves network design, management and operational functions in a truly customer-focused service. With a works threshold of £500,000, the contract runs from October 2005 for 5.5 years, extendable to 10.5 years based on yearly contract performance.
Amey is responsible for the management and maintenance of 2,200 kilometres of road, 330 bridges and over 42,000 street lights. We provide emergency response, winter maintenance, street lighting and fleet maintenance services, plus a full network management service.
In 2009, the contract won a Highways magazine Excellence Award.
Efficiency
During the first year of the partnership we achieved savings of 23% for structural maintenance systems and improvements in programme delivery, road safety, highway and environmental maintenance. We saw a rise in the number of written compliments – with 200 received in the first 18 months. In addition, we saw a significant reduction in the number of complaints received. This shows a clear improvement in customer satisfaction.
Improvement
Since 2005 we have transformed an underachieving operation into one that now excels in all areas. It is recognised by the public and politicians alike for its track record of innovation and improvement
Amey provides a totally integrated service. We operate a single customer service support line, which allows calls to be recorded and dealt with more efficiently.
We are working to support communities in Bedfordshire by assisting the Council with its local development and transport strategy through the seamless integration of services. We are proud of the excellent relationships we have established with Town and Parish Councils, through our Annual Town & Parish Satisfaction Surveys and Area Team Road Shows. This allows us to draw on their knowledge to ensure our operations address local needs and concerns.
We have also implemented a “walk and build” programme to help us deliver a rapid, proactive highways maintenance service, reduce bureaucracy and make best use of our resources.