The new National Joint Utilities Group (NJUG) chief executive, Les Guest, has claimed that the new noticing system is ‘changing behaviour, and bringing about improvements’.
Guest, National Grid’s UK distribution policy manager for street works, plans to build on the work undertaken by Richard Wakelen to champion NJUG’s Vision for street works to make UK street works ‘world class’.
He claimed, in an interview with Surveyor following his appointment, that utility companies were co-operating with highway authorities under the year-old noticing system. ‘Most utilities are sending 90% or more notices on time, and some are now achieving 98% every week,’ said Guest. Utilities such as National Grid were employing independent auditors to check work sites, ‘to confirm that what we said on our notices was right’.
But while NJUG remained of the view that the industry should ‘see how effective the new noticing system is before moving to permits’, NJUG was co-operating with London and Kent in the development of schemes.
In London, ‘we will, shortly, send out permit applications through to all the different EToN systems providers to make sure that it works, and on the 1 October, we know what’s happening’ said Guest. ‘It’s disappointing that NJUG hasn’t been involved in the development of the London scheme.’
NJUG was working with the London mayor as part of his ‘war on street works’, committing to greater use of plating of trenches, and working longer hours where possible, to shorten work duration.
‘We’ve reservations about greater use of plating over safety, but are trialling different systems which are on the market.’
NJUG would also respond to public calls for greater advance information about works taking place, by using, for example, variable-message signs. In general, Guest said that ‘the old adversarial approach to street works really doesn’t work. We want our vision to become the norm’.
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