Highways Agency

• 1 introduction
• 2 public consultation responses
• 3 conclusions

1 introduction

1 Introduction

1.1 Background

This report presents a summary of the data related to the M6 Route Management Strategy (RMS) Public Consultation Process that was held over a 12-week period from 6th May until 31st July 2003.

The process involved the introduction to the public of various proposed actions throughthirteen exhibitions held at eleven different venues along the length of the route. Theproposals had been developed through various workshops and seminars that wereheld in liaison with key stakeholders throughout the year prior to May 2003. Until thatstage, there had been limited public involvement in the M6 RMS.

At the start of the Public Consultation Process, press announcements were made and20,000 leaflets with questionnaires were distributed along the M6 corridor. Theseintroduced the public to the M6 Draft RMS and invited participation in the consultation.The leaflet listed details for the venues and the dates for each exhibition, together withhighlights of the main problems along the route and some possible actions to addressthese issues. In order to aid the response from the public, a pre-paid, pre-addressedquestionnaire was attached, a copy of which can be found in Appendix A.

Additionally, the Highways Agency M6 RMS website was revised to include new publicconsultation material. The site had been developed at the start of the RMS process andmaintained for the entire duration. It provided continuous access for the public toselected reports as well as further information that had been previously collated for theRMS study. It also provided access to an electronic questionnaire to collect views andresponses related to the problems and issues identified.

Prior to the Public Consultation Process, after an initial period of data collection and theFirst Value Management Workshop (VM1), a series of Action Studies were undertaken.These involved a review of the problems and issues that had been identified in VM1and were presented in reports, by Hyder Consulting (UK) Ltd, referenced NH50538 /RT010 to RT013 (inclusive), and RT025. The Highways Agency and other stakeholdersthen reviewed the Action Studies during the Second Value Management Workshop(VM2) in February 2003. The outline of a Draft 10-year Route Management Strategywas then developed and formed the basis of the display boards shown at the publicexhibitions. Copies of these boards were available on the website and can be found inAppendix B.

1.2 Objective

The objective of this report is to summarise and analyse the responses received.These have been submitted as questionnaires, letters, faxes, emails, and "Request forInformation" sheets and have been completed during the 12-week public consultationperiod. On analysis of these accounts, any issues that may or should be incorporatedwithin the draft strategy have been noted. This analysis can be found in Section 2.Conclusions of the findings are presented in Section 3.

1.3 Public Exhibition Dates and Venues

Table 1-1 below, shows the public exhibition dates and venues for the M6 RouteManagement Strategy from 6th May 2003 until 20th May 2003. Figure 1-1, on thefollowing page, maps the geographical location of each of the exhibitions.

1.4 Key Parties Involved in the Publication Consultation

Below is a list of the key parties involved in the M6 RMS Public Consultation Process.

Client

Highways Agency
Sunley Tower
Piccadilly
Manchester
M1 4BE
Contacts: Howard Woolley / Ann Farquhar / Dave Clark
Telephone: 0161 930 5815 / 0161 930 5629 / 0161 930 5695

M6 (J20-Scottish Border) Route Managers

• Roger Fairclough (Area 19* - M6 Junctions J36-A74) : 0161 930 5816
• Roy Wood (Area 17* - M6 Junctions J21a-J36) : 0161 930 5686
• Jonathan Turley (Area 10* - M6 Junctions J20-J21a) : 0161 930 5705

*Please note that, as of July 2003, the HA Maintaining Areas have been revised.

Consulting Highway Engineers

Hyder Consulting (UK) Ltd
Firecrest Court
Centre Park
Warrington
WA1 1RG
Contacts: Tim Groves / Peter Ho
Telephone: 01925 830 206

1.5 Press Releases

Prior to the M6 RMS Public Consultation Exhibitions, the Highways Agency advised thelocal media of the forthcoming event in order to increase public awareness andencourage a greater interest, attendance and response. Those journals listed below, inTable 1-2, accepted the invitation to publicise the event. Copies of these articles arereprinted in Appendix C.

1.6 Exhibitions

In order for the public consultation phase of the RMS to be successful, much time hadto be allocated to the preparation and layout of the exhibitions. The following wasbeneficial in this regard:

• Considerable effort was given to placing the display-boards in a position of prominence at the chosen location. By contacting the centre managers in advance, agreement was reached regarding a safe and yet, suitable display location
• Representatives of the Highways Agency were consistently on hand to discuss all of the relevant issues. These included two members of the Manchester branch of the Highways Agency and two members of the Warrington branch of Consulting Highway Engineers. Each representative acted in an enthusiastic and friendly manner by handing leaflets to passing members of the public where possible and responding to any questions asked and comments made as well as providing assistance in the completion of the M6 RMS documentation
• There were display-boards located in the forecourts of the chosen locations. As can be seen below (showing photographs of the exhibition), these boards had four panels each of which showed an A0-size laminated image relating to the RMS and, in particular, the proposed route Action and Management Plan. Additionally, there were four dockets of supplementary leaflets clearly displayed underneath the A0 images and three dockets of brochure/questionnaires. The displays and brochures clearly suggested that the leaflets should be requested. Several members of the public collected the documentation for reference and comment.
• The leaflets provided at the exhibitions were made available on the HA M6 RMS website and, indeed, are still available today
• Two A-frame display-boards were erected in the vicinity of the exhibition either at the entrances of the various venues or another relevant site. These highlighted that the exhibitions were taking place and directed the public towards the exact location of the exhibition.
• Prior to the public consultation exhibitions, advance notification was issued to all of the key stakeholders along the route as well as members of any relevant organisations. A letter was issued on 2nd May 2003. This letter is displayed in Appendix D along with a table of those people to whom the letter was issued. The final column of the table shows the number of brochure/questionnaires that were enclosed within the same invitation pack.
• Additional leaflets and posters were distributed at key locations. The locations are shown in Appendix E. The leaflets and posters were displayed in leaflet display cases and windows at these locations.