Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence as reported at the meeting.

Apologies were received from County Councillor Oakford.

To receive any declarations of interest by Members in items on the agenda. For any advice on declarations of interest, please contact the Monitoring Officer before the meeting.

There were no disclosable pecuniary or other significant interests declared at the meeting.

Members should indicate which item(s) they wish to speak on and the nature of their comments no later than 4pm on the working day before the meeting.

(Pursuant to Cabinet Procedure Rule 28.4)

Councillor Neve had registered to speak on TB25/17.

Councillor Heasman had registered to speak on TB26/17.

Councillor Moore had registered to speak on TB26/17 and TB30/17.

Councillor Jamil had registered to speak on TB30/17 but was not in attendance.

The Chairman noted that nine members of the public had registered to speak, although not all were in attendance at the start of the meeting.

The Chairman will move that the minutes be signed as a correct record. The only issue relating to the minutes that can be discussed is their accuracy.

(To Follow)

Members reviewed the minutes. No amendments were proposed.

RESOLVED – That the minutes of the meeting dated 17 July 2017 be approved as a correct record.

The Board considered the Tunbridge Wells Tracker for October 2017. Comments were made in respect of the Tracker Items as follows:

Tracker Item 1 – A26 Cycle Route:

Hilary Smith, Economic Development Manager, TWBC, confirmed that funding including £1.2million from the Local Growth Fund, had been approved for the scheme. Final designs were still under discussion.

Councillor Lidstone commented that a fully segregated route would be preferable.

In response to a question from Councillor Simmons, Ms Smith advised that officers were looking at the possibility of widening the pavement between Southborough Common and Mabeldon which may allow shared space.

Tracker Item 2 – Pedestrian Crossing on Major York’s Road and Langton Road:

Emma Green, Schemes Programme Manager (West), KCC, advised that both schemes were due to be delivered in February 2018. In response to a question from Councillor Woodward, she added that Major York’s Road crossing had be prioritised and design was complete. The Langton Road crossing was expected to be designed in November 2017.

Tracker Item 3 – Carrs Corner:

Ms Green commented that officers had met with stakeholders and were awaiting the result of road safety audits in respect of three proposals.

Ian Rennardson had registered to speak on behalf of Calverley Park Gardens Residents’ Association.

Mr Rennardson commented that the issues around Calverley Park Gardens were well known, HGVs needed to be rerouted and other vehicles should be reduced. He questioned the motive behind maintaining unnecessary risks and added that HGVs were dangerous and caused disproportionate damage. He noted that two petitions regarding road safety in the area had been submitted.

County Councillor Holden said that he had been working with Kent Association of Local Councils to ban heavy lorries in villages and town centres along similar lines as had been achieved by Leicestershire County Council. Many lorries were passing through counties and not contributing to the local economy whilst causing damage and harming the quality of life. He suggested that roads should be re-designated to allow proper management of appropriate traffic and that better management would be welcomed by hauliers as it would reduce fuel consumption from constant gear changing.

Becki Bruno, resident of Royal Tunbridge Wells, had registered to speak.

Ms Bruno commented that there was considerable public support for better pedestrian safety around Carrs Corner. The first petition calling for 20mph zone had been signed by more than 500 people which was more than had been for the St John’s 20mph zone. A second petition, signed by more than 1,000 people called for better pedestrian crossings in the area. These were in response to long standing problems.

County Councillor Rankin concurred with the comments of the speakers and noted that another lorry had recently become stuck on the Carrs Corner roundabout. She was not satisfied with Kent County Council’s response so far.

County Councillor Hamilton supported the comments of the speakers. She recognised a need to maintain access for deliveries and to look at the implications of potential changes to avoid moving problems but  ...  view the full minutes text for item TB23/17

Nick Baldwin, Senior Traffic Engineer, TWBC, introduced the report and noted that this matter was returning to the Board having received the legal advice requested at the previous meeting. He reminded members that objections had been raised to proposals to extend permit parking to particular properties. The advice was that there would not be a sound legal basis for excluding eligibility to existing properties but that any new properties could be excluded if implemented from the start of the development. County Councillor Barrington-King welcomed the clarity of the advice.

County Councillor Rankin was disappointed that the exclusions could not be made and asked whether exclusions on new properties could be achieved through the Planning process. She added that the area was already oversubscribed and there needed to be a reduction in the number of permits. Mr Baldwin noted that there were 28 residents only spaces plus some shared spaces. He was aware of several examples where Councils had tried to manage the eligibility to parking permits through the Planning process but these had proven to be unlawful.

In response to questions from Councillors Lidstone, Backhouse and County Councillor Rankin, Mr Baldwin commented that parking permits were not transferable so could not be sold. Rosemarie Bennett, Parking Manager, TWBC, added that permit applicants needed to provide proof of insurance, vehicle registration and other documents such as a council tax bill to prevent fraud.

RESOVED – That the proposed course of action, as set out in the report, be endorsed.

Nick Baldwin, Senior Traffic Engineer, TWBC, introduced the report and noted that the matter had previously come before the Board but that since the meeting several objections had been raised. Officers had agreed with a request from the local members to review the proposals and try to agree a compromise. He added that bus operators had continued to report problems so some action would need to be taken.

Ailsa Hemsley, resident of Royal Tunbridge Wells, had registered to speak.

Ms Hemsley commented that the main problem on King George V Hill was speeding to which the parked cars provided a natural countermeasure. The report stated that part of the rationale for the proposals was concerns raised regarding pedestrian access. However, a recent freedom of information request had revealed only one such complaint. A compromise solution had been set out but there had been no consultation on the compromise. She questioned the motive for the proposals given there being no apparent problem to solve and urged members to reject the recommendations.

Councillor Neve, member for St. James’ Ward, had registered to speak.

Councillor Neve commented that the consultation could have been done better. He said that vehicles exiting side roads onto King George V Hill could not see oncoming traffic and the length of the restrictions in the proposed compromise solution was not accurately represented in the drawing. He added that some parking was desirable to act as traffic calming.

In response to questions from Councillors Lidstone and Woodward, Councillor Neve stated that he would like to see the principle of the compromise proposals implemented but with a slight amendment to shorten the length of the restricted areas.

Mr Baldwin proposed a site visit by local members, officers and residents to discuss and clarify proposed restrictions. Members agreed.

RESOLVED – That the Board requests the restrictions be not implemented pending a site visit and clarification of proposals prior to the matter returning to a future meeting.

(To Follow)

Nick Baldwin, Senor Traffic Engineer, TWBC, introduced the report and noted that the response to the public consultation had been low. It was proposed to implement the restrictions where there had been a positive response but omit those where there was no clear indication of support.

Emma Haswell, resident of Royal Tunbridge Wells, had registered to speak.

Ms Haswell commented that there were no parking issues before AXA occupied premises in Hawkenbury however she did not support the proposals was they would likely make the situation worse by restricting the number of spaces available. She called for an extension to the permit parking scheme.

Rudolf Liney, resident of Royal Tunbridge Wells, had registered to speak.

Mr Liney was opposed to the restriction on Teise Close as the problems caused by AXA had been resolved. Many of the houses had off-street parking and there was no support for permits as they were expensive. He called for the implementation of a 10 mph speed limit and suggested that AXA could be allowed to use parking around the allotments.

Mary Ollett, resident of Royal Tunbridge Wells, had registered to speak.

Ms Ollett noted that yellow lines had been installed on a previous occasion but there were still too marny cars parking in the road, up to 16 vehicles could be parking in a line preventing other vehicles from passing. She added that many cars were driven on the pavement which was dangerous and caused damage. AXA had not built the multi-storey car park they promised when occupying the site so residents now had to contend with inconsiderately parked vehicles blocking access.

Councillor Moore, member for Park Ward, had registered to speak.

Councillor Moore welcomed the additional consultation and added that the incremental implementation was a good option.

Councillor Heasman, member for Pantiles and St. Mark’s Ward, had registered to speak.

Councilllor Heasman questioned why permits were only available to numbers 12-40 Hawkenbury Road and why certain elements of the proposals had changed. He added that the problems had been caused by irresponsible parking.

Mr Baldwin advised there was a clerical error and the report should have stated numbers 2-40, however, it was no longer proposed to have permit parking on Hawkensbury Road due to a lack of support.

In response to a question from County Councillor Hamilton, Mr Baldwin advised that AXA were not in breach of any regulations as they complied with the requirement to extend surface parking. He added that AXA had responded positively to the issues and were contributing financially to support the proposed restrictions.

Councillor Backhouse commented that when AXA applied for planning permission they would have had to submit a travel mitigation plan.

County Councillor Rankin thanked the officers and welcomed the proposal to implement only the restrictions that were wanted by residents.

The Chairman, County Councillor Barrington-King, thanked the speakers and commented that it was important to take account of the local knowledge. He sought members’ agreement with the recommendations with the caveat that officers  ...  view the full minutes text for item TB26/17

Nick Baldwin, Senior Traffic Engineer, TWBC introduced the report and noted that the proposals in Zone A were linked to the previous report regarding Hawkenbury. The consultation sought confirmation of the principle of permit parking but the results were split. Officers would formulate final proposals before consulting again. It would be prudent and it was as the intention to issue one order with several elements.

Phillip Day had registered to speak on behalf of Pantiles Traders’ Association.

Mr Day commented that the Association was grateful for the opportunity to be consulted and would be happy to work with officers to find a mutually agreeable solution.

The Chairman, County Councillor Barrington-King welcomed the offer of the Traders’ Association and there being no further comments sought agreement to the recommendations.

RESOLVED – That the course of action, as set out in the report, be endorsed.

The Chairman, County Councillor Barrington-King, with the consent of the meeting, brought forward the late item included in the supplementary pack.

Gary Stevenson, Head of Environment and Street Scene, TWBC, introduced the report which included the following comments:

·         The report sought approval to commence a public consultation on the proposed improvements to the public realm which formed part of the Five Year Plan and Corporate Priorities.

·         The project would be funded by the Local Growth Fund and Tunbridge Wells Borough Council and was designed to continue on from Fiveways.

·         These were the second designs after the project team had been challenged to provide a bolder scheme.

·         The plans were intended to: (i) naturally reduce traffic flow without the need for formal restrictions; (ii) provide a more dignified setting for the war memorial; and (iii) enhance the entrance to the museum and future cultural hub.

·         Several other bodies had been consulted, including Royal Tunbridge Wels Town Forum and the Public Transport Forum.

County Councillor Barrington-King noted that he had some involvement in commencing the plan in a previous role as Portfolio Holder and welcomed the progress.

County Councillor Rankin noted that the traffic would be displaced and asked what the impact would be on Carrs Corner, as improvements in one area could not be at the expense of other areas. Mr Stevenson advised that a project looking at road safety improvements would work in tandem with the public realm project.

Councillor Woodward supported the principle of the proposals but expressed concern that the plan appeared to give greater priority to vehicles travelling across the junctions at York Road and Monson Road where it was already difficult for pedestrians to cross. Mr Stevenson advised that this was not the intention and there would be less northbound traffic reducing the number of vehicles using the junctions. He added that the junctions themselves would be engineered with raised paving and other features to require drivers to proceed more slowly.

The Chairman, County Councillor Barrington-King, invited Councillor Moore, who was in attendance and the member for Park Ward, to speak.

Councillor Moore supported the proposals. Whilst she agreed with the need for associated improvements in other areas she noted that currently funding was only available for the Mount Pleasant Road elements. Public feedback was clearly in favour of more cycling and walking friendly spaces and the scheme was attractive.

Councillor Stanyer welcomed the proposals but questioned the loss of previously proposed market space. He added that a budget of £1.3m was relatively small. Mr Stevenson concurred and advised that the plans had been designed within the limitations of the budget.

County Councillor Hamilton asked where the traffic counts had been located and where funding for any consequential needs would come from. Vicki Hubert, Principal Transport Planner, KCC, commented that several sites around the town had been used to build a picture of traffic flow through the town. It was expected that some modal shift would reduce the number of vehicles coming into  ...  view the full minutes text for item TB28/17

Lisa Gillham, District Manager for Tunbridge Wells, KCC, introduced the report for information and invited questions.

County Councillor Barrington-King thanked officers and commented that the works programme was a snapshot of the considerable work that went on behind the scenes.

RESOLVED – That the report be noted.

Prior notice of the topic must be sent to the Chairman and Democratic Services Officer no later than 4pm on the working day before the meeting. There can not be any substantial debate/discussion or any decision on any topics raised, but the agreement of the Board that the topic may come forward in future would be required.

The Chairman, County Councillor Barrington-King, reminded members of the process for submitting items for future meetings as set out in the agenda and noted that 4 such submissions had been received.

Councillor Moore, member for Park Ward, had registered to speak and introduced items 2-4 below.

Comments were made in respect of each item as follows:

1. Transport implications of the Civic Development:

County Councillor Barrington-King raised the matter on behalf of Royal Tunbridge Wells Town Forum which requested that a full analysis of the implications of the civic development on all road and pavement users be undertaken, including pedestrian safety, coach parking, pollution, HGV access, street scene. Vicki Hubert, Principal Transport Planner, KCC, advised that these matters would be covered in the planning application and it would be inappropriate for the Board to consider this matter at this time.

Members agreed not to proceed with this item.

2. Reducing Pinch-points on the A26:

Councillor Moore commented that there were several small issues that contributed to the traffic problems on the A26 and tackling each could have a cumulative positive effect on congestion. Suggestions included: (i) installing a box junction at the intersection of London Road and Church Road to reduce the instances of queuing vehicles blocking the road; (ii) removing parking at the top of Mount Ephraim where the road narrows by the old hospital; and (iii) altering the timing of pedestrian crossings to give more time between stops.

Councillor Woodward supported the idea of relieving the area at the top of Mount Ephraim.

Ms Hubert advised that officers could undertake an initial review of the suggestions and added that linking up the cycle routes could help reduce congestion. She was cautious about increasing the wait time for pedestrian crossings as this may be counter to efforts to encourage walking.

Members requested that this item come forward to a future meeting.

3. High Street Parking:

Councillor Moore suggested installing echelon parking on the High Street to increase the number of available spaces. Nick Baldwin, Senior Traffic Engineer, TWBC, commented that the suggestion had been made before but was rejected for a number of reasons. He added that such schemes did not necessarily increase the number of spaces and the implications would need to be investigated.

County Councillor Barrington-King suggested that if a previous report on the matter existed it could form the basis of the investigation. Councillor Woodward felt this matter was worth revisiting.

County Councillor Rankin was happy to support the matter being looked into but cautioned that any proposal to make changes would need a full consultation. Hilary Smith, Economic Development Manager, TWBC, agreed that Traders’ would need to be involved in any such proposals.

Members requested that this item come forward to a future meeting.

4. HGV Restrictions, Halls Hole Road:

Councillor Moore commented that there were well known problems with inappropriate vehicles using Halls Hole Road, often getting stuck. Whilst mandatory restrictions would be preferred, there should be, at least, advisory signs directing  ...  view the full minutes text for item TB30/17

The date of the next scheduled meeting is Monday 15 January 2018 at 6.00pm.

The next meeting of the Joint Transportation Board would be held on Monday 15 January 2018 commencing at 6pm.