Agenda item - Our City Transport Plan 2035

42.1    Cllr Muten presented “Our City Transport Plan” to the committee, setting out a 10 year strategic vision of getting around a cleaner, fairer, growing city supported by well-run council services. Key points included: increasing the number of electric vehicles and charging points across the city; making public transport safer, more inclusive and accessible; working towards low emissions, net zero and to improve public health. The plan includes a target for fully electric buses by 2027, making the city more equitable for those living in more deprived areas and for those with disabilities; to introduce a Park & Ride service, neighbourhood mobility hubs, AI driven traffic management, to reduce disruption from utility services and more efficient management of roads, pavements and lighting. The presentation summarised timelines for the transport projects, details of objectives and the results of the recent public consultation.

42.2    Cllrs Fowler, Cattell and Shanks asked questions about electric vehicles and charging units; requesting more lamppost charging points and a more accessible app. There was a comment about electric vehicles tending to be very large and too big for a normal parking space. Cllr Muten said that there are 500 charging points currently in the city with plans to increase this so every community has access to multiple charging points.

42.3    Cllrs Fowler, Sykes and Earthey asked questions about buses; whether the 50U bus that used to serve Hollingbury could be reinstated, that often the screens at bus stops aren’t working, that there should be dropped kerbs by bus stops to help those who need them, who decides new X bus routes and whether there is flexibility in the funding for the Bus Services Improvement Plan. Cllr Muten said that Brighton & Hove Buses are very responsive to residents’ needs and will make improvements, such as the introduction of the 1X and a brand-new express route, 3X. He said he would raise the issue of the 50U.

42.4    Cllr Sykes asked about devolution and the new Mayoral Authority adopting the City Transport Plan, that there are a lot of questions about how this will work and there is the potential that significant elements of the plan could be ditched. A lot of work has gone into this including the Strategic Environment Assessment which costs around £50k, Cllr Sykes suggested adopting the SEA now under the current council so that it’s a formal document and will then have more influence over a future mayoral transport plan. Cllr Muten said that the Mayoral Authority will need a regional transport plan, that the SEA will be passed to the regional transport authority, and that devolution will mean better connectivity beyond the city’s boundaries. Mark Strong of the Community Voluntary Sector said that he was not as confident as Cllr Muten about the Mayor controlling key route networks.

42.5    Cllr Earthey and Mark Strong had questions about the projected costs; that £150k for smart traffic lights seemed too low and there was a conflict between aspirations with £900m allocated for electric vehicles, typically owned by more wealthy people, compared to £200m for dropped kerbs to help those with disabilities. Cllr Muten said that there are 2 junctions being trialled with smart traffic lights and if they are successful, more will be rolled out. Kieran Taylor said that the budget figures are based on anticipated costs and that the details will be confirmed for February which is when the council’s budget is approved.

42.6    Cllr Loughran asked for a review based on behaviour changes and how people perceive getting around the city quicker, that some college students want to cycle from Prestonville to Surrenden to get to school but the topography and obstruction of the railway tracks makes this very difficult; that the 50+ steps at Lovers Lane need a metal track for bikes; and there needs to be a better cycle lane going north to Patcham. Cllr Shanks said that more people want storage for their bikes and safer protected cycle lanes. Cllr Muten said that new cycle schemes were being introduced such as Valley Gardens.

42.7    Mark Strong (CVS) said that “traffic” means walking and cycling as well as road transport and that he would like to see Figure 12 from the report - “household trips by mode and income”, done locally rather than nationally. He said that these plans should be co-produced with relevant community groups.

42.8    Cllr Lyons said that he was underwhelmed by the plan and felt the vision should be bolder, suggesting trams or monorails being included and used Bilbao as an example of a city where relatively few people use private vehicles.

42.9    Cllr Winder asked about air quality and the live mapping data so that people can see areas that are improving. Cllr Muten said they are improving the air quality monitoring network and that it is publicly available on the website in real time and people can search back in time to see the changes in air quality in a particular area.

42.10 Cllrs Cattell, Shanks and Mackie asked about repairs, particularly

pavements; that people have had accidents from tripping over poor paving, that they are very icy in the winter and not gritted; and people don’t feel safe walking on the pavements, especially where cars are parked on them, some street furniture cause hazards and the use of e-scooters. Cllr Muten said that they have launched a refresh of the highways maintenance policy and that each report is risk assessed and built into the repair programme. He said that there will soon be national policy coming on pavement parking, that they work with partners to ensure street furniture is not hazardous and noted that private e-scooters are illegal. Cllr Cattell said the reporting system needs improvement and Mark Strong suggested using “Fix my Street” service.

42.11  RESOLVED – that the report be noted.