First HS2/EWR Marshal now in post in Buckinghamshire

Buckinghamshire Council has appointed its first HS2/EWR Marshal, to help residents impacted by the High-Speed 2 and East West Rail project works taking place across the county.

As marshal, Mark Rann will be the council’s eyes and ears on the ground, addressing highways and planning issues caused by HS2 Ltd, the EWR Alliance and their appointed agents, contractors and subcontractors.

Mark took up his post in late July and is quickly getting to know the key issues across Bucks and building relationships with interested parties.

He said: “This is going to be a really exciting and challenging job.

"I will be having direct contact with HS2 Ltd, EWR Alliance and their appointed agents and contractors, with the aim of minimising impact on the highway network and inconvenience to the public - liaising directly with statutory utility companies and other parties to ensure the Highway Authority obligations for street works and traffic management are met.

"I am looking forward to representing the local planning and highway authority at public meetings, liaising with councillors, parish councils, local forums, residents and businesses.”

Cabinet member with responsibility for HS2 and EWR, Peter Martin, said: “We have identified the need to invest further into our handling of HS2/EWR activities for the benefit of our communities.

"We are delighted that Mark has now joined us. This is an extremely important role and with him out in the field, he will help us resolve the many issues our residents are experiencing as a result of the works of HS2 and EWR and ensure we do all we can to mitigate the impact and activities of these projects.

"We are hoping Mark will be joined by another marshal in the very near future to give us even more support across the whole of Bucks.”

A major part of the marshals' role will be to respond to complaints and queries relating to traffic management, highways activities and planning-related issues of HS2 and EWR.

To achieve this, they will ensure that all works and site operations are completed within the agreed plans, programmes and timescales, and issue instructions and directions to the contractors to minimise disruption and inconvenience to the public. They will also have the unitary council’s planning powers of entry to check works and mitigation are compliant with the Town and Country Planning and Local Government Acts.

Mark can be contacted at [email protected]