DEPUTATIONS FROM MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC

 

A period of not more than fifteen minutes shall be allowed at each ordinary meeting of the Council for the hearing of deputations from members of the public.  Each deputation may be heard for a maximum of five minutes.

 

Deputations received:

 

(1)      Deputation: Cycle Storage Pilot

 

Local environmental community group, Hanover Action, requests that the Committee designate Hanover and Elm Grove as a pilot area for the roll out of secure covered cycle storage across the City. We have been making a case for secure storage for some time, have strong evidence of local demand and feel that this area would be ideal to demonstrate the effectiveness of a cycle storage system.

The terraced housing in Hanover does not allow easy access to rear gardens to store cycles, and in family housing and multi-occupied property, providing secure, protected storage is difficult without taking up valuable living space. Providing secure covered cycle storage such as Cyclehoop’s Bikehangar, managed by an organisation such as Cyclehoop or by the Council themselves would support cycle ownership and use.

All of the current secure parking in the area is very heavily oversubscribed with one resident only achieving a space after 9 years on the waiting list.

In 2018 we carried out an online survey via our website which asked residents whether they would like covered cycle storage in their street. This had 73 respondents from 33 streets and 72 of those supported the idea of covered storage. In particular, residents in Bentham Road, Elm Grove, Belgrave Street, Finsbury Road, Hanover Street, Scotland Street, and Islingword Street were keen to see secure covered parking in their streets.

In May 2018, we did a walk about with an officer from Cyclehoop to look at possible locations for Bikehangar stores which we were hoping to apply for lottery funding for. These broadly fall into 3 categories:

Space on the highway not used for parking and not needed for traffic: For example at the end of Islingword Street.

Space on pavement: For example a number of locations on the east side of Elm Grove:

Space to take up part of existing cycle parking (throughout Hanover): for example on Scotland Street.

We have been lobbying for secure cycle storage for several years with the support of local Councillors however up until now Council policy has not supported them. The introduction of covered cycle storage now forms part of plans under consideration for the pilot Hanover and Elm Grove Low Traffic Neighbourhood. Designating Hanover and Elm Grove as a pilot are for cycle storage would support the delivery of the LTN and could show how storage could be installed and managed.

 

Supported by:

Leah Good

Jackie Strube (Lead Spokesperson)

Ian Macintyre

Sarah Gorton

Kristoffer Hewitt

Les Gunbie

(2)      Deputation: Request for improvement of conditions and facilities for active travellers on the B2123 Falmer Road.

 

We, the undersigned, being residents of Rottingdean, Ovingdean, Woodingdean & Saltdean, request that a portion of the Department of Transport’s Active Travel Fund - Tranche 2, recently awarded to Brighton and Hove City Council be allocated to the villages in the east of the city, to improve conditions and facilities for active travellers on and around the B2123 Falmer Road.

The B2123, although designated as a ‘B’ road, is a very busy1 link between the A27 and the A259. Statistically the road has proven to be dangerous and sadly fatal for some road users2. It also generates ‘illegal’ levels of pollution3. Anecdotally, active travellers and bus users feel excluded from using the B2123 because of the excessive speed and volume of traffic. This is supported by various surveys4, including the results of our recent online survey5. Therefore, we urgently require an area wide approach to our local traffic problems and seek increased and improved traffic management and active travel infrastructure to encourage alternative means of transport and reduce the motor vehicle numbers along this stretch of road.

The following requests are supported by additional information in the attached pages. Our specific requests are:

 

1.  Installation of ‘speed tables’6 at key points on the B2123. These are very effective traffic calming measures7 and can be installed with pedestrian crossings. These are considered more acceptable to buses than speed humps and the size of the speed table can be varied to suit the local context. Speed tables encourage drivers to reduce their speed and help increase drivers’ awareness of active travellers (specifically pedestrians). We believe these must be installed at the ‘isolated’, south bound bus stops where the only means of access to the bus stop is to cross the B2123 at the position of the stop; this is considered most urgent for the south-bound bus stop serving Longhill High School8.

 

2. 


Extension and widening of the existing cycle route linking Woodingdean and Rottingdean (Specifically between the Falmer Rd./Norton Dr. junction, north of Woodingdean through to the A259 at Rottingdean) The existing cycling infrastructure on the B2123 is made up of pedestrian footpaths re-designated as ‘shared space’. The existing gravel cycle path from Falmer to Woodingdean currently ends at Norton Drive, with no further designated route for cyclists wishing to travel further south to Rottingdean until the junction with Brownleaf Road, a full mile south, where a section of ‘shared space’ starts, this ends after only ½ a mile at the entrance to Longhill High School (Crossing the B2123 en-route). There is no more designated cycling space until the A259 and the shared Undercliff Walk south of Rottingdean. This ‘disjointed’ cycle route is also poorly signed with few ‘shared space’ signs. This creates confusion for pedestrians and cyclists, resulting in cyclists inadvertently using pedestrian only footpaths and/or forcing them onto the main carriageway; creating dangerous conflict between pedestrians, cyclists and motor vehicles. For most of the length of the B2123 there are grass verges8 that we believe would allow for widening of footpaths, giving more space for pedestrians and cyclists to share the space more safely.

1  See traffic volume figures in the appendices

2  See accident statistics for the B2123 in the appendices

3  See link in appendices

4  See supporting evidence in appendices

5  See results of recent online opinion survey in theappendices

6  See images in the appendices for examples.

7  https://www.trafficchoices.co.uk/traffic-schemes/speed-table.shtml

8  See photograph in the appendices

 

Supported by:

Libby Darling (Lead Spokesperson)

Fergus Bain

Jack Chapman

Arwen Matthews

Juliet Eccleston

Louise McTaggart

Sara Molyneux

Henri Schmitt

Boyd Darling

Janet Leech

Emma Durant

Alison Peters

 

Supporting Information

 

1.      A 2009 traffic survey showed over 14000 vehicles per day passing along the Falmer Road at Woodingdean. Source:

https://roadtraffic.dft.gov.uk/manualcountpoints/990421

 

2.      Between 2005 and 2019 there have been over 20 “slight incidents”, 7 “serious incidents” and 1 “fatal incident”. Sources: https://www.crashmap.co.uk/Search

 

3.      The B2123 at Rottingdean is subject of an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) since 2013 as levels of nitrogen dioxide have exceeded the statutory limit set by the Government. The 2015 Air Quality Management Plan pinpointed the High Street as the most polluted street in the Brighton area.

 

4.      “Many people feel that it is too dangerous to cycle on roads. More than three-quarters of drivers reporting never or very rarely cycling on busy single-carriageway and A-roads because of the risks involved, particularly the lack of safe, segregated spaces for cyclists. Around 53% say they would be more likely to cycle on these roads if there were dedicated cycle paths separated entirely from  the traffic.”

(Source:https://www.brake.org.uk/get-involved/take-action/mybrake/knowledge-centre/active- travel/cycling)

 

5.      Full Results of Local Opinion Survey can be viewed here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/16DQ6ZIu976r2UHSF5mDIwG8ExD-2-_wf?usp=sharing KeyFindings:

·         Over 30% of respondents estimate vehicles to exceed the 30mph speed limit every day. And over 90% estimate vehicles to break the limit more than a few times per month.

·         53% of respondents NEVER use Falmer Road on foot

·         81% of respondents NEVER use Falmer Road on a bicycle

 

6.      Examples of Speed Tables:

 

 

7.      “Generally, vertical treatments - such as speed tables - are expected to reduce accidents by around 44%. Motor vehicles are likely to travel at around 13 mph over a speed table. If there's more than one speed table, motor vehicles are likely to travel at 20 mph between them.”

https://www.trafficchoices.co.uk/traffic-schemes/speed-table.shtml

 

 

8.      South bound Bus stop on B2123, serving Longhill High School, showing the position being directly opposite a T-Junction with no other means of access other than crossing the road at a high risk location. Note the wide grass verge on the left of the road (Image from Google street view)

 

 

9 Additional Information in support of improved active travel infrastructure: https://www.cyclinguk.org/sites/default/files/styles/colorbox_gallery/public/media/%5Bfile%3Amime%5D/c ycle_lanes_infographic_final_large_diversity_0.jpg?itok=XIM4p1qk