Christchurch lets new streets cleaning and maintenance contracts

16 September 2005

Two new contracts to maintain and keep Christchurch city streets clean have been signed by the City Council, while tenders for a third area are now being evaluated.

The new agreements are for the cleaning, maintenance and resurfacing of all roadsides, roadways, kerb and channel and footpaths in an area and include the emptying of refuse bins, verge mowing and the upkeep of signs and road markings.

The Council will effectively only have to deal with the main contractor for each area. Pulling together work that had been spread among a number of contracts, the Council believes it will provide a more efficient, effective and consistent service.

Fulton Hogan Ltd has been awarded the central city contract - all roads within the four avenues. The three-year agreement is worth a little over $9 million. City Care Ltd has been awarded the northern Christchurch contract, also for three years. It covers all roads within the city’s Fendalton/Waimairi and Shirley/Papanui ward areas and is worth just under $21m.

The new arrangements are being phased in over the next few months, says Don Munro, the Council’s manager of transport and city streets. As old contracts have lapsed, interim agreements have ensured work continues to be done.

Tenders for the third area-wide contract to be let this year - for the city’s east - closed this week. A decision on the successful tender is expected to be made by the City Council  before the end of October in time to start on 1 December.

“These new contracts mean we now have partners who are taking responsibility for all elements of this work in one part of the city,” Mr Munro says. “It’s not just about cleaning and litter collection. These contracts cover the range of work needed to keep our city streets and surrounds in good shape. The new contracts will result in a more coordinated approach and  better customer responsiveness.”
 
“Reviews being done by the City Council in coming months include considering whether the levels of service for things like street sweeping and litter collection need to be changed. We have written these agreements so that if the elected members decide there should be a change, we can do that in negotiation with our new contractors without having to re-tender.”

The fourth city area, the south, cannot yet be reorganised under a single contractor because there are several contracts in that area which still have more than a year to run. Mr Munro believes the west will come into the area-wide system around the middle of 2007.

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