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 29 November 2023

(c)           Deputations: To receive any deputations submitted by the due date of 12 noon on the 29 November 2023.

(A)          Petitions

(1)           Resident’s parking in South Hollingdean

42.1      The Committee considered a petition signed by 304 people requesting residents parking in South Hollingdean.

42.2      The Chair provided the following response:

“I recognise the outcome form the public consultation for Hollingdean earlier this year was not so favourable for residents in South Hollingdean. This was debated at some length at the October Transport and Sustainability Committee. I recommend that an effective residents parking scheme in South Hollingdean is considered as a priority when the parking scheme priority timetable update report is presented to this Committee next year. In response to my recommendation, I am given to understand that officers will ensure this petition is considered when outlining the way forward in the report for Members to discuss”.

42.3      Resolved- That the Committee note the petition.

(B)          Public Questions

(1)           Valley Gardens 3

42.4      The questioner was not present at the meeting.

(2)           Clean Air Zone

42.5      Adrian Hill read the following question:

“We need a Clean Air Zone to clean up our toxic air. At the full council meeting on 19th of October the Chair said that we have a functioning zone and that buses and taxis will be charged if they drive through the small zone right now. I understand the zone is a voluntary zone (i.e. it doesn't charge nor does it ban), that it doesn't include taxis and that the voluntary part doesn't begin until 2024. Can you confirm the nature of the zone and tell me how many drivers have been charged so far?”

42.6      The Chair provided the following reply:

“Adrian, thank you for your continued interest in how the bus Ultra Low Emission Zone in the city centre works.

Building on my response to you in October, I can confirm that the bus Ultra Low Emission Zone that stretches from the Old Steine to Palmeira Square, has been in place since 2015 and does apply to buses.  The zone has required bus operators to invest in progressively cleaner vehicles which includes new low emission buses, and the retrofitting of existing vehicles, by the city’s bus operators.  This means that good progress has been made.

Key dates for the operation and enforcement of the zone are that vehicles initially needed to be Euro5 standard as a minimum, with this increasing to all buses entering the zone to be Euro6 by October 2024.

Euro 5 and 6 are European emission standards for pollution from vehicles which reflect the progressive introduction of increasingly stringent standards. The higher the number, the less the harmful emissions.

No fines have been issued for entering the zone reflecting the commitment of bus operators to improvements. Air quality monitoring data since the bus ULEZ introduction along the route has improve appreciably and as such our city’s ULEZ can be considered a success. We retain a watching brief to ensure that it continues to be so”.

42.7      Adrian Hill asked the following supplementary question:

“Do we expect the most effective air quality improvements to be implemented as a matter of urgency?”

42.8      The Chair provided the following reply:

“There are some initiatives that I outlined in my Chairs Communications such as looking at emissions-based parking which is designed to encourage cleaner vehicles in our city. We do consider improvement to air quality as a priority and there’s further work for us to do for example in the parking review and other improvement in air quality.

(C)          Deputations

1)             Concerning tackling congestion on the A259 which is delaying buses so that the peak commute journeys now take up to 65% longer than in 2010.

42.9      The Committee considered a deputation regarding congestion on the A259.

42.10   The Chair provided the following response:

“The council’s Bus Service Improvement Plan (or BSIP) is focused on exactly what your deputation is seeking to highlight – working in partnership with operators to make bus services faster and more reliable. This will make them an even more attractive option for people, with the aim of increasing bus passenger numbers by 7 million by 2030.

I understand that your previous deputation to ETS committee in November 2021 requested a High Occupancy Vehicle trial to allow some vehicles to use the A259 bus lane, east of Rottingdean High Street. In 2021, the Chair’s response acknowledged the cross-boundary A259 South Coast Corridor Major Route Network Study being led by East Sussex County Council, and the potential difficulties associated with the enforcement of High Occupancy Vehicle Lanes (HOVL).  The committee agreed that it would receive a report at a future meeting. The idea of a HOVL was put forward as a stakeholder suggestion during the during the stakeholder events. This deputation now appears to be suggesting that all traffic could use the bus lane, so it would be helpful to be clear about what is actually being proposed.  Local bus operators have been asked for their views and have said that the bus lanes in question are an example of best practice and have been key to patronage and service level growth over the years.

A number of infrastructure and revenue measures were approved by committee in 2022 as part of the Council’s Bus Service Improvement Plan, funded by the Department of Transport. Included in that package were proposals for the introduction of additional bus priority measures on the A259. Rather than undertaking any assessment and making any recommendations on the existing bus lane in isolation in an officer report, it is important to consider the potential combined impacts of your idea with other potential proposals in the city.  We expect to be able to provide an update on Bus Service Improvement Plan proposals for the A259 in Brighton and Hove next year, and would address your proposal at that time.

It remains important to recognise the East Sussex study which includes consideration of the County Council’s separate bus lane proposals. The study has been developed through valuable input from a wide range of stakeholders and a Strategic Outline Business Case has now been submitted to the government’s Department for Transport for review. There will be opportunities for further review and evaluation of the packages of measures in the next stages of the Business Case process, which the council will feed into”.

42.11   Resolved- That the Committee note the deputation.