Kingston and Sutton Councils appoint VolkerHighways for new street lighting contract
VolkerHighways has been awarded a ten-year street lighting term maintenance contract for the Royal Borough of Kingston and London Borough of Sutton Councils, worth £20 million. The contract will begin in April 2021 and will continue until 2031.
The contract will include the general maintenance and repair of street lighting and illuminated signs and bollards, including over 11,000 street lights for the Royal Borough of Kingston and 15,000 street lights for the London Borough of Sutton.
Works will include routine and non-routine maintenance works, planned LED replacement works and a night scouting service. VolkerHighways will also provide an emergency call out service, including responding to any incidents on the road network.
To support local employment and training in the area, VolkerHighways will be employing at least one apprentice, who will have the opportunity to learn and be trained to industry standards and gain experience working within the business’ highly trained team. Any further recruitment required by the contract will be aimed at the local community.
In VolkerHighways’ first year, in addition to general maintenance and repair, the business will replace life-expired luminaries with LEDs for the Royal Borough of Kingston.
By replacing existing lighting with LEDs, the contract will achieve energy savings for the Councils, as well as providing a lower carbon footprint. More reliable lighting will contribute to improving safety for both residents and road users in Kingston and Sutton.
Alistair Thompson, managing director of VolkerHighways, said: “We are delighted that the Royal Borough of Kingston and London Borough of Sutton Councils have awarded us their street lighting term maintenance contract. We are committed to providing a high-quality, efficient service that improves safety in and around Kingston and Sutton. We look forward to the contract getting underway.”
Cllr Hilary Gander, environment and sustainable transport portfolio holder for the Royal Borough of Kingston, said: “Modern, reliable street lighting is an important part of the council’s commitment to the safety of our residents and to our climate emergency carbon reduction targets. We welcome VolkerHighways to Kingston to work with us.”
Cllr Manuel Abellan, chair of Sutton's environment and sustainable transport committee for the London Borough of Sutton, said: "This new contract will help reduce Sutton's energy bills and support our ambitious climate emergency response. The new LED lamp columns can also double up as electric vehicle charging points.
More reliable street lighting will also ensure local residents feel safer after dark and help improve road safety in the borough."