Portsmouth: a Longstanding Contract
Actively committed to protecting the environment for a number of years already, Colas companies in the United Kingdom are able to meet the low-carbon requirements of both their customers and the government. With a long-established local presence, as in Portsmouth where teams are mobilised for a 25-year contract, Colas Ltd and Colas Rail UK form an integral part of the British landscape.
Colas has been upgrading and maintaining roads in Portsmouth for the past 18 years. This innovative Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contract was signed in 2004 with the city’s authorities for a period of 25 years. It was the first contract of its type in the UK. Concretely, Colas teams are responsible for everything related to the city’s road network: routine maintenance, street cleaning, winter maintenance… It is a daily commitment, all year round.
In Portsmouth, the workforce is mainly local. By working closely with all stakeholders - residents, motorists and private companies – Colas employees are constantly improving the service delivered. Thanks to an effective and constructive partnership with the city, Colas has become deeply rooted in Portsmouth’s landscape.
In 2022, the Group consolidated its foothold across the Hampshire town by experimenting with an innovation called Flowell, a first in the UK. LED panels were installed on a crosswalk on the junction of Clarendon Road and Palmerston Road, in an effort to enhance visibility for motorists, and help improve the way people use it, especially at night. The test site will be monitored as pre-installation data has already been collected. On other experimental sites in Europe, convincing results have been observed: more quiet driving behaviour, higher risk awareness, and therefore increased safety for pedestrians.
