Agenda item

Results of Statutory Consultation

(a)     Lower Caversham Resident Permit Parking

(b)     Milford Road and Meadow Road Closures and Cow Lane Corridor Speed Limit reduction

A report informing the Sub-Committee of objections and other feedback received during the statutory consultations on proposals for:

(a)     Implementing a Resident Permit Parking scheme in Lower Caversham;

(b)     Closing Milford Road and Meadow Road and reducing the speed limit on Wigmore Lane, Portman Road, Cow Lane and Richfield Avenue from 40mph to 30mph.

Minutes:

The Executive Director for Economic Growth and Neighbourhood Services submitted a report informing the Sub-Committee of objections and other feedback that had been received during the statutory consultation on proposals for:

a)       Implementing a Resident Permit Parking Scheme in Lower Caversham; and

b)       Closing Milford Road and Meadow Road and reducing the speed limit on Wigmore Lane, Portman Road, Cow Lane and Richfield Avenue from 40mph to 30mph.

The responses to the statutory consultation for the Lower Caversham Resident Permit Parking proposal were attached to the report at Appendix 1 and the responses to the statutory consultation for the closure of Milford Road and Meadow Road and the proposed speed limit reduction on Wigmore Lane, Portman Road and Richfield Avenue were attached to the report at Appendix 2.

The statutory consultation period for the second proposal had closed on 7 June 2019, after publication of the papers for the Sub-Committee, so an updated version of Appendix 2 had been produced after the close of the consultation period and circulated prior to the meeting.

a)       Lower Caversham Resident Permit Parking Scheme

The report explained that a number of requests for resident permit parking had been received from residents living in Lower Caversham.  These had been pulled together and an area scheme had been proposed, which had been added to the list of Resident Permit Parking requests.  The scheme had been prioritised by the Sub-Committee at its meeting on 13 March 2017 (Minute 77 refers).  Informal consultations had been conducted to inform the desire for development of a scheme and allow feedback on concept designs to be considered and a public drop-in session had also taken place.  The resulting proposals had been agreed by the Sub-Committee to proceed to statutory consultation at its meeting on 10 January 2019 (Minute 39 refers).  The consultation had been carried out over a three week period.

At the invitation of the Chair, Jennifer Loucaides addressed the Sub-Committee on the Lower Caversham Resident Permit Parking Scheme.

b)       Closures of Milford Road and Meadow Road and reduction of speed limit on Wigmore Road, Portman Road, Cow Lane and Richfield Avenue.

The report explained that the results of an informal consultation that had been carried out by Abbey Ward Councillors in May 2018 on the principle of closing Meadow Road and Milford Road to through traffic had demonstrated a favourable consensus toward the development of the proposals and a design had been submitted to the Sub-Committee on 10 January 2109 (Minute 40 refers).  The proposal included the closures and also the removal of the width restriction on Addison Road, thus removing an access issue that could be created for a number of businesses on Cardiff Road.  The removal of this width restriction would not create a rat-run and had allowed the scheme proposal to include extending nearby resident permit parking bays.

The report explained that at the Sub-Committee on 12 September 2018 (Minute 20 refers), officers had proposed a reduction of the speed limit, from 40mph to 30mph, on the Cow Lane corridor between Oxford Road and Caversham Road, taking in Wigmore Road, Portman Road, Cow Lane and Richfield Road, which would improve access/egress to/from side roads and accesses along the corridor and improve the perception of safety for pedestrians and cyclists.

Both proposals had been approved for progression to statutory consultation and officers had considered that they were complementary proposals relating to the vicinity of Cow Lane and therefore had combined them into a single statutory consultation.  This consultation had been conducted over a three week period.

Resolved –

(1)     That the report be noted;

(2)     That, following consideration of the objections and other feedback noted in Appendix 1 and Appendix 2, the proposals for the Lower Caversham Resident Permit Parking Scheme and the Closures of Milford Road and Meadow Road and reduction of speed limit on Wigmore Road, Portman Road, Cow Lane and Richfield Avenue be agreed for implementation as advertised;

(3)     That the Assistant Director of Legal and Democratic Services be authorised to seal the resultant Traffic Regulation Orders and no public enquiry be held into the proposals;

(4)     That the respondents to the statutory consultation be informed of the decision of the Sub-Committee accordingly.

Supporting documents: