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Current State of the Roads in East Renfrewshire
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TOPIC: Current State of the Roads in East Renfrewshire

Re: Current State of the Roads in East Renfrewshire 5 years, 1 month ago #43

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----Original message----
From : This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Date : 15/02/2019 - 13:32 (GMT)
Subject : RE: RE: RE: RE: Current State of roads - Viaduct Rd, Linwood Ave and Overlee Rd.

Until the mid 1980’s coal tar based materials (road tar) were used in all layers of road construction including surface dressing.

Coal tar is a by-product of coal carbonisation, it was then subject to distillation and chemical processing to produce products such as creosote, pitch and road tar.

In its raw state it is a viscous brown/black liquid with a distinct pungent odour which can make it identifiable even when mixed with other materials.

Road tar does not contain all the chemicals which are in unrefined coal tar.

It is a complex mix of hydrocarbons derived from coal tar some of which are carcinogens.

Coal tar is classed as a carcinogen and consequently road tar is also classed as a carcinogen even though it may contain fewer hazardous compounds than untreated coal tar.

Waste containing coal tar at levels >0.1% is classed as Special Waste and must be disposed of at a site licensed to take such material and at present the only such facility in Scotland is Avondale Environmental Landfill site at Polmont near Grangemouth which at present is not accepting any more of this type of waste as it has reached its annual quota with the next nearest licenced tip being in Huddersfield.

Any materials being taken to these licenced tips must be accompanied by a Waste Acceptance Criteria (W.A.C.) Certificate and this requires W.A.C. testing to be carried out on the material in advance.

The cost of disposal of material at this landfill site is around £140 per tonne (this does not include haulage costs) which compares to a cost of approx. £5 per tonne for the disposal of non-hazardous road waste.

There are therefore huge cost implications for carrying out works on sites containing this type of material.

The Scottish Road Research Board advises that to confirm the extent and depth of coal tar affected layers road core samples should be taken ahead of any works as this will determine whether coal tar containing materials can be left undisturbed and allows the removal / disposal process to be planned and prevents delays on site.

Since finding coal tar present in the area we have tested all of our remaining planned surfacing sites for this financial year and at present have commenced testing on potential sites for next financial year.

With assistance from Corporate Health and Safety our Safe Systems of Work and Risk Assessments for carriageway and footway resurfacing schemes were amended to cover working on sites where coal tar is present.

The additional precautions put in place include revised PPE requirements (dust masks and gloves that must be disposed of at the end of each working day, goggles, hi-vis waterproofs, hearing protection and safety boots washed down at end of each day and provision of a laundering service for non-waterproof hi-vis work wear.

Following assessment of the risks from inhalation or contact with road extracted materials which contain coal tar it was determined that the risk arises from repeated exposures on a daily basis and of significant quantities.

Any risk therefore is particular to the workforce conducting the tasks and will not be a concern for residents of the area or to those who pass the works being conducted.

Existing control measures used when creating dusts of any nature will continue as they have previously.

Alternatives to excavation and inlay will be explored wherever possible as an alternative to planing out e.g. overlaying, surface dressing etc. to avoid removal of material from site (this may prove difficult in urban locations where existing levels and topography have to be considered).

Contact will also be made with contractors offering in-situ strengthening and stabilisation methods to establish of any of these methods might offer a practical and cost effective alternative to conventional inlay resurfacing.

As well as impacting on our surfacing programme there are also implications for any of our works which involves excavation of bituminous materials e.g. drainage, small scale patching, pothole repairs, kerbing, sign pole/bollard installation.

It is not practical to pre-test all sites prior to this type of minor work and therefore our Risk Assessments and Safe Systems of Work had to be amended to assume a coal tar presence for untested locations and this type of minor excavation work was suspended in the meantime – pothole repairs continued but with no cutting of edges, infilling only.

We also had to consider what scale of works would require to be tested in advance and what the implications there were for the disposal of this untested material.

We hope to be able to brief operatives on the revised RAs & SSOW very soon with a view to re-commencing minor works with excavation (and cut out repairs to potholes) as soon as possible thereafter.

Cllr Alan Lafferty
Labour & Co-operative Member Ward 4
Convener for Environment
East Renfrewshire Council

Re: Current State of the Roads in East Renfrewshire 5 years, 1 month ago #44

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Cllr David MacDonald has posted on his Facebook Page -

Cllr David Macdonald for East Renfrewshire added 6 new photos — in Busby, East Renfrewshire, United Kingdom.
2 hrs ·

Roadworks at Viaduct Rd and resurfacing and replacement of kerbs at entrance and exit of layby. The work at the layby I feel is very low on the list of priorities given the state of some roads in the ward.

Subsequent Posts -


- Will they be resurfacing the rest of Viaduct Road ? Or are we to be left with the botched attempted pothole fill in they did last week , which has mostly crumbled and come out allover the road in Viaduct road !
1h

- The attempted ‘work’ on Viaduct was terrible!!
David do we have the email for the head of roads so we can make a complaint?
Truly appalling. No value for us at all.
1h

Cllr David Macdonald for East Renfrewshire -
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
please feel free to email them separately.
46m

Cllr David Macdonald for East Renfrewshire -
I spoke to the workmen and it is just the work you can see that is being done at this time.
45m

- Cllr David Macdonald for East Renfrewshire thank you for the information it is however disappointing.
43m

Cllr David Macdonald for East Renfrewshire -
A lot of decisions leave me scratching my head and wondering why certain work is being done ahead of others. The layby for instance. That pavement was just fine. I feel the funds to pay for that could have gone to more work being done on Viaduct Rd. The quality of which is appalling.
43m

- That layby is about the same length as the road I live on, less traffic uses it, pedestrians and children don't use it, yet our road doesn't even get gritted never mind resurfaced
2h

- Well said
1h

- Council decision pointless?
Surely not??...
2h

- What rubbish
2h

- Really amazing considering the pot holes and of course the school parking issues we have! Glad to see ERC using their brains again!
1h

- You’ve clearly never pushed a pram between busby and Clarkston on that side of the road. The complete lack of a dropped kerb and muddy ground makes it difficult/dangerous. Well done ERC.
6m

Re: Current State of the Roads in East Renfrewshire 5 years, 1 month ago #45

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From: *Roads
Sent: 11 February 2019 14:57
To: Miller, Stewart (Cllr)
Subject: 1914513/116986 - Cllr Miller - Pothole Repairs Viaduct Rd, Linwood Abenue, Overlee Road

Hi Councillor Miller,

I’ve taken a look myself at the repairs carried out on the above roads.

I would agree that those in Viaduct Road are not ideal and they have begun to break out again.

The surrounding road surface there is not in a good condition which makes it difficult to effect a long lasting repair especially when infilling only.

As you may be aware we have not been able to carry out the usual cutting out around our repairs recently due to the discovery of coal tar in the area and the need for us to re-assess our working practices and risk assessments accordingly and therefore have been infilling potholes only.

We hope to be able to revert to proper cut out patching again very soon and I will arrange for this area to be re-visited by our repair squad then.

Regards
Roads & Transportation Controller
East Renfrewshire Council
Unit 2 Spiersbridge Business Park
Thornliebank
G46 8NG

-------- Original message --------
From: *Roads <* This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >
Date:11/02/2019 15:02 (GMT+00:00)
To: "Miller, Stewart (Cllr)" < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >
Subject: FW: 1914513/116986 - Cllr Miller - Pothole Repairs Viaduct Rd, Linwood Abenue, Overlee Road

Sorry Councillor Miller, should also have added that a new traffic island is planned to be installed at the Viaduct Rd/Busby Rd junction before the end of March ‘19 and the section of Viaduct Road at its junction with Busby Rd will be fully resurfaced then,

Regards
Roads & Transportation Controller
East Renfrewshire Council
Unit 2 Spiersbridge Business Park
Thornliebank
G46 8NG

----Original message----
From : This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Date : 15/02/2019 - 19:26 (GMT)
Subject : Fwd: 1914513/116986 - Cllr Miller - Pothole Repairs Viaduct Rd, Linwood Abenue, Overlee Road

Dear Sir

Please see the enclosed email which I hope answers your questions

Kind regards
Stewart

-------- Original message --------
From: "Corrie, Jane" < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >
Date: 15/02/2019 15:47 (GMT+00:00)
To: "Miller, Stewart (Cllr)" < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >
Cc: *Roads <* This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >
Subject: Re: 1914513/116986 - Cllr Miller - Pothole Repairs Viaduct Rd, Linwood Abenue, Overlee Road

My apologies Stewart I thought I had sent you a response to this but it was in my outbox.

Until the mid 1980’s coal tar based materials (road tar) were used in all layers of road construction including surface dressing.

Coal tar is a by-product of coal carbonisation, it was then subject to distillation and chemical processing to produce products such as creosote, pitch and road tar.

In its raw state it is a viscous brown/black liquid with a distinct pungent odour which can make it identifiable even when mixed with other materials.

Road tar does not contain all the chemicals which are in unrefined coal tar.

It is a complex mix of hydrocarbons derived from coal tar some of which are carcinogens.

Coal tar is classed as a carcinogen and consequently road tar is also classed as a carcinogen even though it may contain fewer hazardous compounds than untreated coal tar.

Waste containing coal tar at levels >0.1% is classed as Special Waste and must be disposed of at a site licensed to take such material and at present the only such facility in Scotland is Avondale Environmental Landfill site at Polmont near Grangemouth which at present is not accepting any more of this type of waste as it has reached its annual quota with the next nearest licenced tip being in Huddersfield.

Any materials being taken to these licenced tips must be accompanied by a Waste Acceptance Criteria (W.A.C.) Certificate and this requires W.A.C. testing to be carried out on the material in advance.

With assistance from Corporate Health and Safety our Safe Systems of Work and Risk Assessments for carriageway and footway resurfacing schemes were amended to cover working on sites where coal tar is present.

Following assessment of the risks from inhalation or contact with road extracted materials which contain coal tar it was determined that the risk arises from repeated exposures on a daily basis and of significant quantities.

Any risk therefore is particular to the workforce conducting the tasks and will not be a concern for residents of the area or to those who pass the works being conducted.

Existing control measures used when creating dusts of any nature will continue as they have previously.


The purpose of the traffic island is to reduce the crossing distance for pedestrians and to add an element of safety / security for them at this complex junction.

The island is funded by an SPY grant at no cost to the Council. The Council is taking the opportunity to resurface the entire junction area whilst the work is being carried out at a cost of approximately £9k.

Regards
Jane

-------- Original message --------
From: "Corrie, Jane" < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >
Date:15/02/2019 15:56 (GMT+00:00)
To: "Miller, Stewart (Cllr)" < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >
Subject: Fwd: 1914513/116986 - Cllr Miller - Pothole Repairs Viaduct Rd, Linwood Abenue, Overlee Road

Last para should read SPT grant not SPY !

Jane

Re: Current State of the Roads in East Renfrewshire 5 years, 1 month ago #46

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Posted here as well to keep Topic complete and up to date.

Not that exclusive see previous posts.

Published Barrhead News On Line -

20/02/2019
1 hr ago
Exclusive by John McNee

Discovery of ‘hazardous’ tar sends pothole repair plan into meltdown

EAST Renfrewshire’s roads repair programme has been thrown into chaos by the discovery of dangerous coal tar, the Barrhead News can reveal.

The use of coal tar in roads was commonplace until the mid-1980s but has since been classified as ‘hazardous.’

While it is quite safe for road users and pedestrians, as a carcinogen it poses a risk to workers who have to excavate and handle it.

The discovery of coal tar in East Renfrewshire means the council is unable to perform ‘cut out’ repairs of potholes.

Instead, the local authority is only able to place a temporary filling in craters as a ‘patch.’

Removal of coal tar also has “huge cost implications” for the council, as strict procedures must be followed when dealing with its disposal.

Material containing coal tar at levels greater than 0.1% is classed as ‘special waste’ and must be disposed of at a site licensed to take it.

It is understood a site operated by Avondale Environmental Landfill at Polmont, near Grangemouth, is the only one in Scotland which deals with coal tar.

However, Councillor Alan Lafferty, East Renfrewshire’s environment convener, has said Avondale is not currently accepting any more of this type of waste, as it has reached its annual quota – with the next nearest licensed tip being in Huddersfield.

In an email to community councillors, Mr Lafferty wrote: “The cost of disposal of material at this landfill site is around £140 per tonne (this does not include haulage costs), which compares to a cost of approximately £5 per tonne for the disposal of non-hazardous road waste.

“There are therefore huge cost implications for carrying out works on sites containing this type of material.

“As well as impacting on our surfacing programme, there are also implications for any of our works which involves excavation of bituminous materials – e.g. drainage, small-scale patching, pothole repairs, kerbing, sign pole/bollard installation.”

The matter came to light after residents in Clarkston complained about potholes in Viaduct Road, Linwood Avenue and Overlee Road receiving only temporary repairs.

Neilston residents also noted potholes were no longer being excavated but simply filled in, with no tar to seal the edges, meaning repairs are unlikely to last long.

Jim Sheriff, secretary of Neilston Community Council, said: “There are clearly implications both in terms of the possible additional cost on the roads budget and the suggestion that Neilston Road was being considered for early resurfacing.

“We understand that ERC had taken samples from Main Street and Neilston Road last year but the reason or results were not conveyed to the community council.”

East Renfrewshire Council confirmed it has suspended minor excavation work, meaning potholes will only receive temporary “infilling” until new procedures are put in place.

The local authority would not reveal where coal tar was discovered.

A spokesperson said: “All planned resurfacing sites will be tested for the presence of coal tar prior to work commencing, although it is not practical
to carry this out for all minor works, which includes pothole repairs.

“This has meant that minor excavation work has been temporarily suspended to allow updated safe systems of work and risk assessments to be put in place.

“Once these revised procedures are completed, it will allow all minor works with excavation, including cut out repairs to potholes, to resume.”

Re: Current State of the Roads in East Renfrewshire 5 years, 1 month ago #47

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Sent: 27 February 2019 15:28
To: Corrie, Jane
Subject: 1914513/116986 - Cllr Miller - Pothole Repairs Viaduct Rd, Linwood Abenue, Overlee Road

Hi

Can you give an update of when proper repairs will be carried out in Viaduct Road, to repair the previous 'not ideal' attempts.

The Roads & Transport Controller previous said -

’Ive taken a look myself at the repairs carried out on the above roads. I would agree that those in Viaduct Road are not ideal and they have begun to break out again. The surrounding road surface there is not in a good condition which makes it difficult to effect a long lasting repair especially when infilling only.

As you may be aware we have not been able to carry out the usual cutting out around our repairs recently due to the discovery of coal tar in the area and the need for us to re-assess our working practices and risk assessments accordingly and therefore have been infilling potholes only. We hope to be able to revert to proper cut out patching again very soon and I will arrange for this area to be re-visited by our repair squad then.

Regards
Roads & Transportation Controller'


Thanks

Re: Current State of the Roads in East Renfrewshire 5 years, 1 month ago #48

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----Original message----
From : * This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Date : 27/02/2019 - 17:00 (GMT)
Subject : RE: 1914513/116986 - Cllr Miller - Pothole Repairs Viaduct Rd, Linwood Abenue, Overlee Road

We hope to recommence cut out patch repairs to potholes next week, we should be returning to Viaduct Road within the next 6 weeks to carry out some more repair work,

Regards
Jane
Jane Corrie
Roads & Transportation Controller
East Renfrewshire Council
Unit 2 Spiersbridge Business Park
Thornliebank
G46 8NG
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