Cormac achieves 12% increase in road maintenance satisfaction levels
Cormac has once again proved itself to be a leading civil engineering, highway, and environmental services provider. The latest Cornwall Residents’ Survey reveals an impressive 12% increase in satisfaction levels regarding road maintenance, and an additional 11% increase in maintaining parks and open spaces.
The 2023 survey’s satisfaction level is the highest recorded for many years and demonstrates Cormac’s unwavering commitment to delivering exceptional services and value to its communities.
They have achieved a 26% increase in residents’ satisfaction in road maintenance since 2018 and are 14% above the national average (benchmarked through Local Government Association). This improvement has been delivered despite a significant reduction in highway funding over the period.
The highways administration team expertly managed an impressive volume of more than 120,000 customer enquiries from MPs, elected members, and the public, setting an exceptional standard for customer service in 2023.
This follows from Cormac delivering over £38 million of environmental, social, and economic impact to Cornwall’s communities in the same year.
Cornwall Council conducted the survey using the “Are You Being Served?” method by the Local Government Association, where residents are interviewed face-to-face or by telephone to gather information. This method enables the council to compare results with those of other councils.
In addition to being recognised in the Cornwall Residents’ Survey, the Association for Public Service Excellence (ASPE) – the largest voluntary benchmarking service across Great Britain – has also compared Cormac’s performance, on behalf of Cornwall Council, with other authorities using a family group system.
The APSE 2022/23 data showed that Cornwall’s highway maintenance service was the highest performer and ranked first in its family group for several factors, including customer satisfaction with the council’s actions to repair roads, the condition of road surfaces, and the quality of repair to damaged roads. The service delivered by Cormac was also ranked second in its group for the speed of repair to damaged roads, how the council deals with flooding on roads and pavements, and the percentage of urgent defects made safe within target times.
The service’s above-average performance in satisfaction with road maintenance is also reflected in the 2023 National Highway and Transport (NHT) Public Satisfaction Survey Report, where the condition of Cornwall’s is ranked as top quartile.
These achievements are significant, given that more than half of the local road network in England and Wales is reported to have less than 15 years’ structural life left as the amount needed to fix the backlog of carriageway repairs increases to a record high of £16.3 billion, according to the latest ALARM survey published by the Asphalt Industry Alliance (AIA).
Dominic Bostock, Managing Director at Cormac, said:
“We are delighted to be recognised by the residents we serve as a leading services provider. Our improvement trend and being 14% above the national average for highways, despite lower funding, is testament to the great work our delivery partnerships are doing”.
“Our unique arm’s length company model, combined with excellent service standards, has helped us achieve a significant rise in satisfaction levels and relevant performance benchmarking is helping us to validate that our partnerships and teams are doing a great job.
“As local councils face increased budget constraints, we will continue to adopt a sustainable and innovative approach to deliver value to our communities and positively impact the environment and society.”
Image courtesy of Cormac.
