National recognition for Vale Council's winter team -
16/01/07
The Vale of Glamorgan Council's highways and winter maintenance
service has again earned national recognition.
The service has been identified as one of the best overall
performers by the Association of Public Service Excellence (APSE)
which has more than 270 local authority members across England,
Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
The APSE is committed to continuous improvement and innovation
in direct service delivery, and Vale Operational Manager (Highway
Maintenance) Keith Jones said: “The highways and winter maintenance
service is essential to the public and travellers in the Vale of
Glamorgan, and we really appreciate the work undertaken by the
staff and workforce in sometimes adverse conditions.
“I am delighted with the performance of everyone associated with
the highways and winter maintenance service which has continuously
improved year on year. Our new state of the art vehicles are ready
for all eventualities."
During 2005/06, with the winter season proving long and onerous,
the Vale carried out salting operations on more than 65 occasions,
often in the early hours of the morning.
"Whilst we did not have a great amount of snow, it was very cold
and icy and could have been very dangerous on main roads but for
our salting efforts," added Mr Jones.
Cabinet Member for Visible Services Cllr Rob Curtis said: "I
know the team work very hard to keep the county roads in good shape
in bad weather.
"The Council's commitment to having a first-class fleet of
vehicles and improved response to bad weather is paying dividends
for the public and especially road users."
APSE Chief Executive Paul O'Brien said: "These awards recognise
the very best in local authority front line services, rewarding
excellence and continuous improvement. The achievements of local
authority direct service providers is a real cause for
celebration."