VolkerHighways has been awarded a Traffic Route LED and Column Replacement contract on behalf of Oxfordshire County Council, worth £5 million. The works began in October 2022 and are expected to continue for 18 months. The project forms part of the £30 million Highways Electrical Assets contract the business was awarded in December 2021.

The contract will see 6,321 LED lanternreplacements and 3,657 column replacements on columns sized eight metres and above, which are located within busy city/town centres, on ring roads and on high-speed roads across the county. The business will provide traffic management support through its specialist in-house division to supply extensive traffic management in these highly pedestrianised areas and on the high-speed roads. The business will also work during restricted hours to reduce disruption to residents and commuters.

The business is on track to achieve Oxfordshire County Council’s target of delivering 75 per cent of Traffic Route LEDs by the end of the 2023 financial year.

VolkerHighways was awarded the additional contract based on quality and reliability, following the successful delivery of its current Highways Electrical Assets contract.

The original long term maintenance contract, which will continue for five years, with the possibility of three years of extensions, sees VolkerHighways maintain around 60,000 street lights and over 6,000 illuminated signs, bollards and other illuminated equipment, across the county. The business is also upgrading a further 35,000 units with LED lighting. In 2022 alone, VolkerHighways installed over 25,428 LEDs across Oxfordshire.

Councillor Andrew Gant, cabinet member for highways management for Oxfordshire County Council, said: “Converting our streetlights to LED is the most significant project we are carrying out to reduce our carbon emissions, so we are delighted that this work is continuing at a pace.”

Alistair Thompson, managing director of VolkerHighways, said: “With rising energy costs, LEDs prove an effective way not only to reduce costs, but also to play a part in reducing Oxfordshire County Council’s carbon footprint. We are pleased to be delivering this additional contract for the council and continuing our relationship across the county.”