The Highways and Transport Scrutiny Committee are scheduled to meet to discuss the North Hykeham Relief Road, strategic route surfacing procurement, and a revision to the definitive map modification order prioritisation policy. The committee will also be considering performance reports for road safety, and reviewing their work programme.

North Hykeham Relief Road

The committee will be invited to consider a report from Sam Edwards, Head of Highways Infrastructure and Laboratory Services, regarding the North Hykeham Relief Road (NHRR) - Proceed to construction. This is ahead of a decision by the Executive on 6 January 2026.

The report pack includes the full report that will be presented to the Executive, which notes that the Secretary of State for Transport confirmed the Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) and Side Roads Order on 30 October 2025. The NHRR Full Business Case (FBC) was submitted to the Department for Transport (DfT) on 30 September 2025.

The report to the Executive recommends that they:

approves the issuance of the contractual instruction to Balfour Beatty under the terms of the existing two-stage contract to proceed with the construction of the NHRR, subject to confirmation by the Department for Transport that the Full Business Case is approved.

The report also recommends that the Executive delegates authority to the Executive Director of Place, in consultation with the Executive Councillor for Highways and Transport, to negotiate minor changes to the existing contract with Balfour Beatty and enter into a Deed of Variation in respect of the existing agreement.

The report notes that the NHRR is the last major highway scheme contained within the Lincoln Integrated Transport Strategy (LITS), and a key part of the Central Lincolnshire Local Plan. The project aims to assist the sustainable economic growth of Lincoln and Lincolnshire, improve quality of life in central Lincoln and surrounding areas, maximise accessibility to central Lincoln, and improve road safety in central Lincoln and nearby settlements.

The report also sets out a timeline for the scheme, with construction (main works) scheduled from March 2026 to May 2029.

Strategic Route Surfacing Procurement

The committee will be invited to consider a report from Steve Brooks, Senior Project Leader, Highways Infrastructure, regarding the 2026/27 Strategic Route Surfacing Procurement. This is ahead of a decision by the Executive Councillor for Resources and the Executive Councillor for Highways and Transport, scheduled to take place between 15 and 19 December 2025.

The report pack includes the full report to the Executive Councillors, which recommends that the Executive Councillor for Resources approves the Strategic Route Surfacing Schemes as detailed in the report. It also recommends that the Executive Councillor for Highways and Transport approves the undertaking of an individual procurement process for delivery of each of the Strategic Route Surfacing Schemes to be delivered throughout 2026/27, and delegates authority to the Executive Director for Place, in consultation with the Executive Councillor for Highways and Transport, to take all decisions necessary to progress the Schemes.

The report notes that the schemes relate specifically to Hierarchy 1 and 2 carriageways, which are the highest classification of roads within the county's network and are considered strategically vital. They include key arterial routes such as the A15, A16, A17, A46, A52, and A158.

The list of schemes currently under development for delivery in 2026/27, with their high level indicative construction costs, are:

• A15 Folkingham £850,000
• A17 Wigtoft Bypass £1,500,000
• A1031 North Cotes £1,200,000
• A57A1192 University Roundabout/ Ropewalk and Yarborough Road Bank Slip, Lincoln - £3,000,000
• B1517 Grantham Road, Sleaford £1,600,000
• A153 Anwick £1,300,000
• A52A607 Great Northern Gyratory, Grantham £600,000
• A151 Bourne Road Roundabouts, Colsterworth £1,000,000
• A606A6121B1081 Empingham Road/ Scotgate/ North Street Junction £700,000
• A1175 Barnack Road, Uffington £600,000

Revision to the Definitive Map Modification Order Prioritisation Policy

The committee will be invited to consider a report from Andrew Fletcher, Public Rights of Way & Access Manager, and Chris Miller, Head of Environment, regarding the Revision to the DMMO Prioritisation Policy - Cover Report. This is ahead of a decision by the Executive Councillor for Highways and Transport, scheduled to take place between 10 and 19 December 2025.

The report pack includes the full report to the Executive Councillor, which recommends that the revised policy for the prioritisation of Definitive Map Modification Orders (DMMO) is approved.

The report notes that the council's current policy for prioritising Definitive Map Modification Orders (DMMO) primarily considers the date of receipt, with exceptions for threats to the route, community conflict, health and safety concerns, and strategic importance to the Rights of Way Improvement Plan (ROWIP).

The report also notes that over the past four years (2020–2024), the council received 452 DMMO applications, compared to 57 applications over the previous decade (2010–2019), an increase of 1,582%. The current caseload stands at 583 cases, and each case can take between 3–12 months to determine.

The report states that the national average output for a fully trained Definitive Map Officer is 4–5 cases per year, meaning that the expected timescales for determining the existing case load is approximately 30 years.

The 2025 review proposes a weighted scoring system to determine the priority of DMMO cases, considering factors such as public safety, residential impact, levels of user evidence, community conflict, legal proceedings, threats to routes, financial savings, and network connectivity.

Service Level Performance Reporting - Road Safety Service

The committee will be invited to consider a report from Steven Batchelor, Senior Manager, Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership, which enables the committee to comment on Service Level Performance against the Performance Framework 2025-26 as at Quarter 2, on Road Safety Service performance metrics.

The report notes that all performance indicators (PIs) within Road Safety are reported as contextual and do not have targets.

As at June 2025:

• PI 11 People killed or seriously injured in road traffic collisions: Actual: 116
• PI 12 Children killed or seriously injured in road traffic collisions: Actual: 6

Highways and Transport Scrutiny Committee Work Programme

The committee will be invited to comment on the content of its work programme for the coming year to ensure that scrutiny activity is focused where it can be of greatest benefit.