EVRA have been in contact with Cadent about restoration of the verges on Greenways following installation of the new pipes. The gas main runs under the verges and multiple holes have been dug to access the connections to each house. The verges have also been used for storage of materials and spoil from their diggings. Connection works on Greenways were largely completed before Easter but many holes on driveways and the road have not yet been filled. The verge runs for 550 metres from the bottom of Greenways and much of this is now in a very poor state with some areas which were previously grassed filled with crushed granite.

According to the Cadent website works should be reinstated within five days of completion. There is helpful information on the cadent website about the gas pipe replacement process and how this works at: https://www.bettergaspipes.co.uk/

Many residents have commented to EVRA about the state of the verges and the information below provides an update on the action that Cadent are taking to repair these. Cadent have been sent a screenshot of Greenways from Google Streetview dated October 2022 showing how the verges should look.

EVRA emailed Cadent in early April and again last week to highlight our concerns and Cadent have now appointed a supervisor to oversee the reinstatement of verges and surfaces. I met with her on Tuesday morning to view some of the problem areas and discuss what needs to be done to restore these.

The new Cadent supervisor sent the following update on Tuesday outlining steps she has put in place to resolve matters on Greenways and Carnoustie:

• I have tried to clear as much muck and rubble from the street today as possible.
• The grab lorry did unload some sand and stone: they are collecting this tomorrow morning.
• I am also in the process of arranging tarmac for the holes that need it, and aim to get this permanently reinstated as quick as I can.
• I am arranging for all unnecessary barriers and signs to be either removed or tidied to one area for storage by the end of the week.
• Unfortunately the larger verges are still needed to store spoil at this time: but I endeavour to have them cleared regularly to maintain site tidiness.
• I will be discussing the exposed wire with my manager tomorrow and inform you with what needs to be done in regards to this problem.
• I also looked at the duct damage on Carnoustie:
• This type of damage Unfortunately is unavoidable sometimes, but our grab teams and white work teams have the skill and replacement ducting to fix every broken duct there is.
• This also must be correctly replaced before we can back fill the holes, as per our remit.
• So rest assured it will all be fixed.

A further update on Friday 28th was as follows:

• I have been getting as much organised as I can as quick as possible.
• So, today I have a tarmac team working on Nutfield Close and Rosslare: if they have enough material they will finish some of the footway patches on Greenways.
• This will allow us to remove some of the barriers.
• I have been allocating my grab team to remove as much muck as possible each day this week to keep the piles to a minimum.
• There is a whitework team out today replacing some kerbs then hopefully laying some topsoil and seed on the verges in Greenways where they can.
• Early next week I will be getting more resources to continue works and clearing of certain areas.
• Thank you for your patience , things will begin to look tidier and manageable moving forward.

Greenways verges are continuing to be used for temporary storage of spoil from diggings elsewhere and this will continue for some time as there are no other suitable places for this. The residents in Merrow Gardens experienced the disruption this causes during replacement works on Ebbisham Drive, Buckland Rise and surrounding roads when materials and spoil was stored there.

You will have noticed that works to replace old cast iron gas pipes in Eaton Village have now moved on to the Sunningdale area and Church Lane. According to the One.network streetworks website (one.network) the current works on Church Lane will run to 19^th May which probably means the temporary traffic lights between Chestnut Hill and Greenways will be in place until then. It is not clear from the site whether the works will then move beyond the Greenways junction to replace pipes further along Church Lane but that is probably the case.

Any roadworks on Church Lane cause delays and congestion as this is the only route through to around 1000 houses in Eaton as well as the primary school and Eaton Vale. The data collected from the Eaton Speed Awareness Monitor (SAM) shows that around 5000 vehicles use Church Lane on a week day with school traffic accounting for 800 of these at peak times. Typical vehicle counts on Saturdays are around 4000 and 3000 on Sundays. The data highlights that some 200 vehicles head to and from Eaton primary twice a day during term time with peak times being 8:30 to 9:15 and 14:45 to 15:30 – the school drop-off and pick-up times.

EVRA will continue to liaise with Cadent to help resolve any issues where we can help and monitor the progress of the reinstatement and clean-up process. It may be many months before all the old gas mains in Eaton Village are replaced. The extent of disruption will largely depend on where the gas mains are located.

Chris Stebbing – EVRA Chair April 2023

Email: evra.vc@live.co.uk