06 Monitoring and Feedback Mechanisms

06 Monitoring and Feedback Mechanisms

It is important for the effectiveness of any policy to assess its general impact whilst actively reviewing opportunities to refine the underlying principles and their wider application. The Scottish Government recognises that the success of a key statement such as Fitting Landscapes will depend on the full and willing engagement of all the many professionals involved in transport projects, whether from the public or private sectors. It is encumbent on Transport Scotland, as the owners of the policy, to take every opportunity to promote its aims and objectives in the course of all development and management of Scotland's terrestrial transport corridors. It is encumbent on those developing and delivering the relevant projects to fully embrace the ethos of the policy and help ensure our transport networks are fully integrated with Scotland's unique and multi-faceted landscape.

Monitoring and feedback are integral parts of the policy; ensuring it grows and develops through the experience of those using it

Fitting Landscapes is a mandatory policy statement for all relevant transport-related developments and will sit alongside other standards and contract requirements for both new works and maintenance schemes. Understanding and application of the policy will be assessed through the usual project control mechanisms and opportunities taken to reinforce the key messages, as appropriate, from the planning, developing and detailing stages through to project delivery and maintenance. Consultants and contractors will be required to demonstrate, through certification and review, that the policy has been firmly embedded in the design development process.

In addition, Transport Scotland will require a periodic post-scheme evaluation of all relevant schemes to determine the degree to which the policy has been applied and to provide an opportunity to learn lessons for the future. This feedback is likely to be undertaken by a third party consultant who has demonstrated a full understanding of the policy aims and objectives and will be able to prepare a report, analysing how well the policy has been integrated into the schemes under review and establish any recommendations for the future - whether in the form of the policy governance, content or application.

To maintain the iterative develoment and refining of Fitting Landscapes, it is also intended to develop a web presence through which practitioners, designers and contractors will be encouraged to add relevant comments in relation to the policy and draw attention to useful examples of good and poor practice. All feedback and lessons learned in relation to the policy will be reviewed, analysed and, where appropriate, used to inform future iterations of the document to ensure it remains fresh and relevant.

68 Monitoring and Feedback Mechanisms

69 Wildflower grassland on the A1 Expressway contributes to biodiversity