Kier lands £225m Somerset highways deal

The £225m contract covers key maintenance works, including road repairs, drainage, verge cutting and winter gritting.

Somerset has a 4,172-mile road network and the current contract with Milestone Infrastructure comes to an end at the end of March 2024. The council has been negotiating with potential suppliers since 2021.

In a change to the way it delivers services, the council has divided up the existing contract into four separate contracts covering different areas of service delivery in a bid to be more cost effective.

Kier Transportation has won the largest contract covering term maintenance. It starts work on 1st April 2024. Many of the staff currently operating under Milestone Infrastructure will be transferring to Kier.

Three other multi-million-pound contracts covering resurfacing, surface dressing, and new assets will also be awarded in due course, the council said.

Councillor Mike Rigby, Somerset Council’s lead member for transport and digital, said: “We’re really delighted to have Kier Transportation Ltd as our new partner maintaining our network – they met all our key criteria and have some exciting proposals about taking the service further in terms of carbon reduction, efficiency and maximising social value for our communities.

“We’ve had a fantastic working relationship with Milestone Infrastructure and we’d like to thank the team for their hard work and dedication, but with the conclusion of the contract there was an opportunity to do something new.

“This is a major refresh of our network maintenance services, something we’d not seen for 27 years, so we are committed to building in resilience to climate change, ensuring a safe, serviceable and sustainable network that is fit for purpose for all users and supports the growth of the local economy.

“Now more than ever it’s vital that we have a financially resilient service that is cost effective, as well as being flexible and agile, attracting the best people and embracing new technologies to enable innovation.”

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