The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that the Council has not renewed road markings at a traffic roundabout. It is unlikely we would find fault by the Council has caused the complainant significant injustice.
The complaint
The complainant, I shall call Mr X, complains the Council has failed to ensure there are adequate line markings at a traffic junction with a motorway. He says drivers who are unfamiliar with the junction need to be made aware.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
The Ombudsman investigates complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We do not start or may decide not to continue with an investigation if we decide any fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Mr X.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr X says the faded road markings at a junction do not provide enough warning and direction guidance for a motorist.
The Council says it is waiting for information from a neighbouring authority about a possible redesign of the roundabout which it understands is complete. It will not repaint the road markings before receiving the redesign information as this may mean closing the junction more than once.
Mr X says he uses the roundabout multiple times each week and witnesses near misses and occasional accidents causing injury, damage, and delay.
I appreciate Mr X has concerns about other motorists, but we must consider how any fault by the Council may have affected him personally. He is aware of the layout of the junction. I do not consider the lack of markings have caused him significant personal injustice.
Final decision
I have decided we will not investigate this complaint. This is because we are unlikely to find fault by the Council that has caused Mr X significant personal injustice that warrants our involvement.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman