Agenda item - Public Involvement

To consider the following matters raised by members of the public:

(a)           Petitions: To receive any petitions presented by members of the public;

(b)           Written Questions: To receive any questions submitted by the due date of 12 noon on the 10 November 2021;

(c)           Deputations: To receive any deputations submitted by the due date of 12 noon on the 10 November 2021.

(A)          PETITIONS

(1)           Review of residential parking and resident consultation on Southall Avenue

48.1      The Committee considered a petition signed by 27 people requesting the Council to Consult residents and review the current parking arrangements on Southall Avenue in line with the Review of parking Zone U.

48.2      The Chair provided the following response:

“Thanks for your petition. Due to the strength of opinion from residents a consultation for this road will be included in the review of Area U. This review is within the priority parking scheme timetable which is being discussed later on in a report to this Committee”.

48.3      RESOLVED- That the Committee note the petition.

(2)           Stop the Round Hill rat run

48.4      The Committee considered a petition signed by 171 people requesting the Council to put in place measures to stop vehicle rat running in the Round Hill area, along Prince’s Crescent and Wakefield Road.

48.5      The Chair provided the following response:

“Thank you for you petition and I’m very sorry to hear about the accident involving the young child and we wish her a speedy recovery. I am a parent of a year 9 pupil and every morning and afternoon I have a wave of fear come over me in regard to his journey to and from school.

In terms of action, I have asked Officers to liaise with the Police to better understand the circumstances and contributing factors of the accident in order to address and develop potential engineering solutions that maybe required. I have also asked Officers to undertake speed surveys in and around the area and review all the existing road signs and markings in the area. I can also report that the Council recently purchased a number of new mobile vehicle activated speed warning signs and I will ensure that Officers make arrangements for these streets to be prioritised for deployment of these signs”.

48.6      Councillor Platts moved a motion to call for an officer report on the matter.

48.7      Councillor Fowler formally seconded the motion.

48.8      RESOLVED- That the Committee receive a report to a future meeting responding to the petition request

(3)           Washington Street bins

48.9      The Committee considered a petition signed by 56 people in support of the introduction of individual refuse bins over communal bins on Washington Street.

48.10   The Chair provided the following response:

“Thank you for your petition and thank you for organising it.

I know the bins have been causing ongoing problems on Washington Street and how difficult it has been to resolve.

Sadly, changes cannot be made immediately as an approved consultation needs to take place with residents to ensure everyone has an opportunity to have their say. I am pleased that there is a report on today’s agenda seeking approval to start that consultation.

If Members agree to the recommendations this afternoon, a consultation document will be sent to all residents of Washington Street from tomorrow, seeking their views on the issue. The results of the consultation will be brought back to a future committee meeting for Members to consider in determining the way forward.

Thank you again for your petition and I hope we can resolve the issues soon”.

48.11   RESOLVED- That the Committee note the petition.

(B)          WRITTEN QUESTIONS

(1)           Traffic calming measures on Osmond Road, Nizells Avenue, York Avenue and Windlesham Road

48.12   Kris Philips read the following question:

“Are the council going to instigate traffic calming measures on Osmond Road, Nizells Avenue, York Avenue and Windlesham Road? Speeding traffic is a daily problem, accelerating up to and through the junction. Pedestrians and cyclists are at risk. There is often aggressive behaviour by drivers who deem another driver, cyclist or pedestrian too slow. This is a main access route to day nurseries and a school and is busy all day. Fine black dust settles on worktops and windowsills from vehicle exhausts. Vehicle pollution is a factor in reduced cognitive development in children and cognitive decline in older people”.

48.13   The Chair provided the following reply:

“Thank you for your question. I’m sorry to hear of the poor behaviour of some drivers towards cyclists and pedestrians and entirely agree with you about the harmful effects of particulate matter caused by vehicle pollution – this is an absolutely critical issue that affects our public health.

As you may be aware, we are committed to encouraging active travel by improving infrastructure for walking and cycling and bus travel. It is these measures that will help in improving air quality across the city as more people begin to use the high-quality walking and cycling improvements we are rolling out across the city - we’re really aware we need to create the conditions for people to do this.

In relation to your concerns on speeding vehicles, it does deeply frustrate me how many drivers think it is appropriate to speed. I will ask officers to undertake a set of speed surveys and review the accident history to better understand any problems and discuss these results and any potential solutions with you.

We do now have a regular meeting with the police and we are raising the lack of enforcement on speeding, particularly 20mph – we can’t enforce speeds as this is done by them but we are making them aware at every meeting that we need more focus on this and more speed checks. I’ve also personally met with Nick May to challenge them on this issue. We have lost over 700 police staff over the last ten years, clearly need to take up the baton and hopefully we will soon be receiving extra enforcement powers from central government”.

48.14   Kris Philips asked the following supplementary question:

“A high number of taxis use these four roads both day and night seven days a week. It’s clearly being used as a shortcut from the main roads and again, the speed of the traffic is well above the 20mph speed limit. Could council request that taxi companies use alternative routes in order to reduce the volume of traffic and the noise created?”

48.15   The Chair provided the following reply:

“I also sit on the Licensing Committee and I’m the lead councillor for taxis so this is something I can bring up but not something I can immediately comment on. I can come back to you on what we could propose to do about this”.