Summary: Mr X complained about the Council’s failure to take action over his concerns about traffic management in an area where he lives. We should not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault, or
• it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or
• it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

3. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We cannot question whether a council’s decision is right or wrong simply because the complainant disagrees with it. We must consider whether there was fault in the way the decision was reached. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I have considered all the information which Mr X submitted with his complaint. Mr X has been given an opportunity to comment on a draft copy of my decision.

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What I found

5. Mr X says the Council has failed to give sufficient consideration to his request for action over increased volumes of tourist traffic in his area which have led to increased nuisance and danger to pedestrians. He is also concerned about the numbers of accidents in recent times.
6. The Council told Mr X that it has a policy for carrying out improvements at sites identified as having a high volume of injury road traffic accidents in line with its statutory duty. The statistics on such accidents is provided by Sussex Police. The Council says the area which Mr X is concerned about does not meet its criteria for additional traffic management.
7. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’ The Ombudsman may not question the merits of decisions which have been made in a proper manner. This means we will not intervene in disagreements about the merits of decisions.

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Final decision

8. We should not investigate this complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault which would warrant an investigation.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman