Road Closure Planned for Newtown Road at Somers Park Avenue within next couple of months - watch here for further details

Following meetings with traders and concerns about developments which would involve roadside parking restrictions on  Newtown Road, Worcestershire County Council have informed me of plans to close the road near Somers Park Avenue within the next couple of months due to scheduled roadworks. 

Working with the relevant officers at the Council we are currently enquiring if the closure can be postponed to the far side of Christmas to ease the trading period in the run up to Christmas.  We are waiting to hear further.

The Council are not clear how long this road closure will be in place.  The information will be on the Worcestershire County Council website once the order has been processed, (as this one has only just been requested the details are not on the website just yet) under Transport and Streets then under Roadworks and Road Closures.  All the information about the closure should be uploaded once the order has been processed, which will give you the dates the closure is booked in for.

The road closure is planned in relation to National Grid Gas Mains pipe maintenance.  If anyone has any queries about this road closure they will need to call the Worcestershire HUB on 01905 765 765 or email me on emmerson@themarch.freeserve.co.uk

TRO for Londis Yates Hay Road, Update

In trying to understand further the degree of integrated thinking between the various teams - Sustainable Schemes, Integrated Transport, Traffic Management - at the County Council I have today spoken with one of our Officers.

They assured me that there is considerable consultation taking place on the schemes, but that there was an issue around the volume and quick turnaround required on these schemes making a full consultation not always practically feasible.  I appreciate the pressure that many very well intentioned officers are working under. 

I was assured that in the case of Yates Hay Road during the consultation stage the relevant properties were contacted and opinions were sought, but only two responses were returned. 

They have agreed to look at the issue concerning the re-routing of the buses down Yates Hay Road rather than their original route along Tanhouse Lane and a meeting has been suggested between Integrated Transport and Sustainable schemes teams.

Traffic Regulation Order will mean double Yellow Lines outside Londis Store, Yates Hay Road, Malvern

Derek Cooke, the entrepreneur who has run the Londis business at the Junction of Yates Hay Road and Upper Howsell Road for 30 years is seeing his business threatened by a Traffic Regulation Order.

A feasibility study conducted about 2 years ago, before I was elected as County Councillor for Malvern Trinity was apparently conducted as this junction had been identified as a ‘cluster site’ – that is an accident black spot, however thankfully it is no longer officially in this category.

But the TRO process has moved on, nonetheless, and on top of this there is a small sum of s106 money.  The process has passed objection stage and is awaiting a decision to be made by the officer responsible for Sustainable Schemes together with the Cabinet member.

The intention is to paint double yellow lines around the junction outside Mr Cooke’s doors at Londis, install a couple of bollards on each side of the road at the crossing points and make some improvements to the kerbside.

Derek Cooke has objected to these plans and as his County Councillor I have also objected to try to  support him and his business. 

He is not impressed by them. “We have 8-10,000 people a week visiting my store and we employ 20 people here as we’re open 6am -10pm seven days a week.  We thrive on having an area outside that’s easy for people to park in.  They want to pop in for their shopping or to use our free cashpoint.

“Double yellow lines outside our store will only put people off.  As soon as you put double yellow lines outside people will pass by, they won’t stop anymore.   As much as anything they are a psychological barrier, people see them and just don’t want to stop.”

Mr Cooke’s concerns aren’t limited to his business though.  He has genuine concerns about the volume of traffic moving through this junction daily, the need for increased parking in the area generally and the congestion and dangers caused by the heavier vehicles, especially the buses using Yates Hay Road.

Buses Using Yates Hay Road

“The 363, 362 and 45 bus routes used to drive down Tanhouse Lane, but were re-routed down Yates Hay Road having to turn right past my store up Upper Howsell Road. 

"This is a tight junction and with cars parked around there is not a lot of space and the buses, including School buses at either end of the school day, drive over the pavements, knocking cars and they are a risk to pedestrians.  I would like to see these buses returning to their original route down Tanhouse Lane.

“Rather than painting double yellow lines outside my store I think we could slow traffic down along Tanhouse Lane with some traffic calming measures and I’d also like to see vehicle weight restrictions down Yates Hay Road which is a busy and narrow residential road.

“My business needs customers to survive. I have a lot of deliveries each week which we need for our customers.  Each week I have 6 large articulated lorries making deliveries, 3 Ginsters lorries, Kerry Foods making 6 deliveries weekly, 7 milk deliveries, 2 Frozen food deliveries and others as well.

“We know we’re valued by our customers because their goodwill and votes for us resulted in our winning the Robert Weisman ‘Best Staff of the Year Award’ 2 years ago and this year we’ve reached the Semi Finals and hope very much to get through the Finals following a Mystery Shop visit that will be made as part of the judging process.

“Double Yellow lines in Malvern Link have killed off those shops and businesses. This TRO is going to make access to the store more difficult given the number of heavy traffic movements around the store, especially since the bus route has changed with buses coming down Yates Hay Road rather than along Tanhouse Lane as they did in the past.  The s106 money appears to address theneeds of pedestrians in isolation of the needs of all road users.”

Newtown Road pre-consultation meeting with Worcestershire County Council Officers 20th September 2010

Worcestershire County Council Officers met with traders, district and town councillors, even though they were not in a formal consultation process as they recognised the strength of feeling being expressed by traders and their concerns with the concepts being discussed for improvements to Newtown Road.

Traders made it very clear that rather than less parking they would like more.  They also stressed that as traffic speeds were for the most part low on the road there wasn’t any need for crossing points on the road, especially towards Link Top.  Officers agreed that average speeds recorded on Newtown Road were low - between 22-24 miles per hour.

Traders stressed that it was not appropriate to compare their customers shopping with them to a retail park experience – a comparison suggested by the officers.  They stated that the retail park was a destination shopping experience where people went to browse and were happy to park someway off some of the shops.  For them their customers were ‘shop specific’ – simply wanting to pop into one of the shops and not necessarily visiting the other shops on the street.

They also emphasised just how difficult trading had been for everyone over recent months and the uncertainty resulting from the concept proposals for additional crossing points along the road, together with the possibility of losing car parking spaces would make it harder for them, or ‘just mess it up’ as one trader put it.  They pleaded with officers to leave the road as it is now and leave their concepts for the crossing points at that - concepts. If not the danger was that this historic shopping area which had been a part of the community for many years could be lost completely.

Whilst traders were not interested in any proposed crossing points for Newtown Road there was considerable interest in improved lighting on the road, especially in view of some recent vandalism to some local premises.

The officers present outlined the process moving forward.  The Sustainable Transport Team would be bringing forward more formally a set of proposals by early next year taking into account the findings regarding traffic and pedestrian movements on the road.  These proposals would then be opened up for consultation.  Following consultations with the public and traders, recommendations would be made by the officers which would come to the County Councillor for agreement or otherwise. 

If the County Councillor was not in agreement with a recommendation then it would go to the Cabinet Member, Cllr Derek Prodger and a senior officer for their decision.  Following this process the Traffic Management team would look at the recommendations made by sustainable transport and consider whether there were any issues that they should bring forward as part of a separate process.

With regards to previous comments made by traders for the road calming measures the officers said that they would not get agreement to traffic calming or further speed restrictions on a B road, but additional signage could be looked at.  As the key area of concern with regards to speed was the section of road around St Joseph’s Primary it was felt that given the path was narrow there this might be a reason why a crossing would not be possible.

The officers reminded traders that the North Site developer had already agreed to some schemes which they would be undertaking – including dual traffic lanes up to the traffic lights at Link Top and having made a contribution to the cost of the North Hill Court parking area indefinitely. These provisions had been agreed under s.278.  The S. 106 agreement specifically covered traffic management and lighting.

With regards to the issues which officers could take into account in making their decisions, their main priority was to look at the users of the road, however, issues around trade and the implications on traders of any such decisions would help with the final decision.

Traders and all present were grateful to the officers for making time available in the evening and for considering their concerns.

Meeting with Worcestershire County Council and Malvern Hills District Council Officers over Newtown Road Developments

Officers attending a meeting at Worcestershire County Hall, Monday 13th September, assured me that with regards to the discussions regarding Newtown Road, we are 'at a very early stage'.  They wanted to reassure traders and residents alike that no changes will be made to the road without proper consultations.

As part of this process there will be a meeting on 20th September at 5.45pm at the Salvation Army Hall on Newtown Road. This meeting is open to traders on the road and local District Councillors with an interest and will be attended by officers from Worcestershire County Council as part of their fact finding exercise.

As part of the discussions officers will be keen to ask traders about their views on the concepts outlined so far for proposed changes for Newtown Road, as well as projections for traffic increases along the road as the North Site development continues. They pointed out in our meeting today that out of a proposed 400 new homes about 100 have so far been occupied, so the impact of any changes in traffic on Newtown road have not yet been fully felt.  They were also very conscious of the need to ' keep a lot of on-road parking' and the impact of that for traders.

The officers were very mindful of the 4 schools in the vicinity and as a result of projections made by WSP Transportation Consultants they had been looking at three possible crossing points along Newtown Road - at the junction with Somers Park Road, at St Joseph's Primary School and opposite the North Hill Court car park.  I highlighted traders extreme concerns at losing on-road parking spaces because of any such developments on the road. 

Officers outlined the facts behind the current free parking at North Hill Court made possible as the result of contribution made by the developer, Persimmon Homes, to Malvern Hills District Council enabling this car park to be free to users indefinitely moving forward.

Officers wished to stress that they were keen to engage in a constructive dialogue with traders, to fully understand their concerns and to try to see what solutions, if any, might meet the needs of all parties.

Old Hollow Residents want their Road included on Worcestershire Gritting Routes

Following a meeting with residents of Old Hollow held on 19th April 2010 I wrote a note of the discussions which was subsequently agreed by all parties - residents from Old Hollow and John Wallace, from County Council Highways.

This note was then presented as evidence on 11th May to the Environment and Economy Overview Scrutiny Panel held to examine the need for further gritting across the county in light of the very harsh conditions during the previous winter (2009-2010), attached below.

Other roads in the area that had been badly affected and over which I have made representations included Ebrington Road, West Malvern Road and Hornyold Road.  

The Scrutiny Panel has now made a number of recommendations regarding Gritting in the County and a Winter Maintenance Review - these will be put to the Cabinet Member, Cllr Derek Prodger, responsible for this area in October 2010, who will then decide which recommendations will be accepted for implementation.

The Case For Winter Road ‘Gritting’ in Old Hollow, West Malvern


1. Introduction:

1.1 During the past few winters and especially during 2009/2010; driving conditions in Old Hollow, West Malvern have been very difficult and dangerous because of snow and ice. Despite numerous requests, the road was seldom gritted and enquiries by the Ward Member, Councillor Beverly Nielsen, revealed that Old Hollow was not included on the County Council’s priority gritting routes.

1.2 Concerns over this situation amongst Residents caused a number of complaints to be made, both directly by individuals and via the Ward Member. As a result, a meeting was held between Residents of Old Hollow; the Ward Member, and Mr John Wallace from Worcestershire County Council Highways.

1.3 Following this meeting it was suggested that a paper be submitted setting out the Residents’ case for the current situation to be remedied and for Old Hollow to be included on the County Council’s priority gritting routes.

2. The Case For Gritting:

2.1 Old Hollow is a narrow, two way, unclassified road with no footpath. It leads steeply uphill from its junction with Cowleigh Road to its junction with Lower Road, a distance of approximately half a mile. Roughly halfway between these two junctions, just past number 103, the angle of the road increases significantly. Old Hollow includes two ‘spur’ roads leading off the main road at acute angles, one at the top and the other at the bottom of the road.

2.2 Acknowledging the County Council’s criteria as discussed at the meeting, it is suggested that the case for gritting Old Hollow is as follows:

2.3 Road Safety: Dangers caused by a lack of gritting in Old Hollow include:

• The very steep gradient of Old Hollow making it difficult to walk in the road during icy conditions.

• The absence of footpaths, forcing pedestrians to walk on a surface shared by vehicles.

• Old Hollow is north facing and as a result is one of the worst roads in terms of its condition during snowy weather in Malvern. This makes Old Hollow significantly more vulnerable than for example Wyche Road.

• Old Hollow is higher than many other areas in Malvern.

• A number of accidents have occurred on the road during the last snowy weather as a direct consequence of the road’s icy condition.

• Driveway walls have been hit by vehicles that had lost control as a result of the icy conditions. There were also a number of ‘near misses’.

• Many vehicles have been seen sliding sideways down the very steep hill. This was clearly very dangerous for pedestrians who couldn’t get out of the way because of:

 The slippery nature of the road.

 The absence of footpaths.

It is suggested that the fact there have not been serious injuries during the past winter is pure luck, as the potential for serious injury is certainly there.

• On a number of occasions, it has been impossible to walk safely in Old Hollow because of the thick ice. This has been made worse by the snow plough which having ploughed the road, and in the absence of gritting, has impacted the snow into thick ice. (Photographs of this are available) On occasions, this has made it almost impossible to walk safely (or indeed to stand upright with any great ease) in Old Hollow.

2.4 Secondary Routes: Old Hollow is a main through route as follows:

School route:

• Old Hollow is the main route for both vehicles and pedestrians to and from the County Council’s Outdoor Education Centre which is off Old Hollow at the top. In this context, the following issues are considered relevant:

 A standard triangular sign warning of a school is displayed in Old Hollow near to the turn off for the Centre suggesting that this is indeed a school, therefore complying with the gritting criteria.

 The road immediately prior to this turn off when going uphill is particularly steep, making it especially dangerous for pedestrians. In the recent icy weather, there were occasions when it was virtually impossible to walk in the road.

• Old Hollow is a well used, main route for both vehicles and pedestrians going to and from:

 Dyson Perrins High School

 West Malvern St James’ Primary School

 Northleigh Primary School

Because there are no footpaths in Old Hollow, the recent bad weather made it very difficult, dangerous and at times virtually impossible for children to use this route as a method of getting to and from these schools. For some children, this is the only route to and from their schools and again, it is considered that this complies with the gritting criteria.

Proximity to Industry/Shops Etc.:

• Old Hollow is a significant route to and from West Malvern to the town centre/ Cowleigh Road/Cowleigh Bank/the main Hereford/Worcester road. For some Residents, this is the only route available.

2.5 It is suggested that in view of this body of evidence; and given that for a number of residents of both Old Hollow and elsewhere in West Malvern, Old Hollow cannot be by-passed; a failure to grit this road creates significant and unavoidable road safety hazards.

2.6 It is therefore suggested that in light of the primary gritting consideration of road safety, Old Hollow does comply with the County Council’s gritting criteria.

3. Other Points Raised During the Meeting:

3.1 During the meeting, a number of other points were raised. Comments on these are as follows:

3.2 Parish Council Lengthsman: It was suggested that Residents might like to consider approaching the Parish Council to see if the Lengthsman could be made available to spread salt during poor weather. It is suggested however that this is impractical for the following reasons.

3.3 If pedestrians can’t walk safely, and vehicles can’t drive safely, which is the case in icy conditions, how is the Lengthsman to physically carry out this task? Added to which, where is the salt/grit to be stored?

3.4 Grit Bins: The subject of grit bins was raised and the point was made that there are very few places in Old Hollow where bins could be placed, certainly not in those areas where the road was at its narrowest.

3.5 Agreeing with this point, it is suggested that grit bins are not really the answer as the road is very steep, and by definition, spreading a little grit/salt in some places would be unlikely to solve the problem pointed out in relation to the Lengthsman. i.e. If pedestrians can’t walk safely, and vehicles can’t drive safely, how is the salt/grit to be spread.

3.6 Consultation: The question of consultation with the community was raised, and residents complained that not only had they not been consulted on the setting of the criteria, they had not been informed about its implications.

3.7 It was pointed out that this information had been made available via the County Council’s website. However, Residents were particularly unhappy that not only was the map showing the existing gritting route ‘almost impossible to read’, but accessing the communications with the residents about the Council’s decisions on gritting was very poor.

3.8 The general mood of the meeting was that residents were very unhappy at the existing state of affairs and wanted to emphasise that:

• Old Hollow had been on the County Council Gritting route a few years back and it was generally understood it had been subsequently excluded for cost, rather than road safety reasons.

• The grit bins provided at the top and bottom of Old Hollow were completely inadequate to the needs of the residents in snowy and icy conditions.

• Grit bins did not display phone numbers at the County Council so residents could alert the County when the salt levels were running low.

4. Conclusion:

4.1 It is felt that where there is a combination of risks that create an unusual level of danger to road users such as north facing roads situated on higher land, especially where there are no footpaths; there needs to be a mechanism for making a ‘special case’ for gritting.

4.2 It is suggested that Old Hollow should be such a ‘special case’ and that what is required to reduce the significant dangers to road safety that currently exist in Old Hollow as a result of untreated, icy roads is a proper gritting/salting regime.

4.3 In conclusion, it is therefore suggested that Old Hollow certainly falls within both the spirit and the letter of the gritting criteria; but that if this is not the case, then the criteria is wrong and needs to be changed.

Council Report recommends Revocation of the Prohibition of Driving Order for traffic using St Peter's Road, Malvern

I attach below the Objection Report received from the County Council Environmental Services Directorate recommending the revocation of the Prohibition of Driving Order on St Peter's Road.


This is very disappointing news and I believe the report fails to address the main concern of both residents and parents and teachers at Northleigh Primary School that with the further development of the North Site St Peter's Road will be vulnerable to an increase in traffic useage levels which will pose a health and safety risk, especially for young children - both residents and those at the primary school using the road to access and leave school at either end of the day but who also have to cross the road during the day to access their playing fields on the other side of the road. Alongside this it will clearly affect all the residents living on this road, some of whom contributed to the cost of highway works (when the road moved from being unadopted) on the understanding that the access order would remain in force after the road was adopted.


Whilst it is encouraging to read in the report below that the Chief Constable is 'mindful of the residents' concerns and if additional traffic management measures could be introduced, then he would be prepared to discuss the detail of any proposed scheme that would achieve the objectives of all concerned.'  However, given that I have already worked with residents and the Council, without success, to see if we could find sufficient money from the Council to improve signage and road markings for St Peter's Road, I am sure residents might feel that whilst we could have discussions we may not be able to access the budgets required to implement any agreement reached between us.


Having today completed and returned my Objection Stage report opposing the recommendation made by the County Council as outlined above, I have also spoken with the officer concerned who has informed me that if any of the three Councillors involved objects to the recommendation the proposal would not receive the support of legal services who would need to see 100% support for this.  I am told that the next stage in the decision-making process at the County Council will be to refer this decision to the Network Control Manager and the Cabinet Member with responsibility for this area, Cllr Derek Prodger. 


OBJECTION STAGE REPORT


ST PETERS ROAD, MALVERN

PROPOSED REVOCATION OF PROHIBITION OF DRIVING ORDER

The local County Councillor is: Mrs B Nielsen
The local District Councillors are: Mrs J Kelly and Mr J Raine


Purpose of Report
To consider letters of objection and comment received following the public advertisement of this proposed Traffic Regulation Order.

Background
Following public advertisement Legal Services received 15 letters/emails of objection and one of support was received. The letter of support, from Northleigh School, was later withdrawn and a letter of objection was then sent in.

Copies of these letters and emails are enclosed. Also enclosed is a copy of the associated proposal drawing numbered T/2008-253. (Note: The advice of legal services is that these should not be available to the public as they concern personal information relating to the individuals who sent these letters, but may be published if these individuals give their consent)

Also enclosed is a copy of a petition received after the objection deadline. It has 25 signatures of people, who object to this TRO proposal. (Note: further signatures have been gathered over the summer as we were unable to get together all the signatures of parents and residents in time for the last meeting of Worcs County Council to be held before the summer break which took place on 24th June 2010. 

Whilst opinions initially differed between residents of St Peter's Road and representatives of Northleigh Primary School it became clear after discussions I was able to facilitate between all parties that everyone was unanimous in their opposition to this proposal.  Following this residents on the road, together with representatives of Northleigh Primary School, including - parents, headteacher and staff and governors as represented by the Chairman of Governors, Mr John Dixon, have opposed this proposal to revoke the Restricted Access Order on St Peter's Road. )

The resident's objections relate to concern at increased traffic flows and resultant road safety fears, should the access only order be revoked. Residents have expressed concern at current abuse of the order, lack of enforcement and congestion, at the beginning and end of the school day. The other common concern relates to the possibility of increased future traffic flows, on St Peter's Road, by traffic associated with the North Site Development, on Leigh Sinton Road. Some residents state that they contributed financially to the highway works, necessary for the public adoption of the road in 2001. Accordingly, they understood that the access only order would remain in force after the road had become part of the Public Highway network. Other concerns relate to the existing school warning signage and the school gateway.

Analysis
An objection was made on the ground that objectors made their objections without knowing the reasons for the proposal as the letter from the Police recommending the proposal was not disclosed. Whilst it is accepted that the letter ought to have been disclosed, this particular issue was resolved by the reasons for the proposal being discussed with objectors, both on the telephone and at a meeting.

The Chief Constable, having considered the correspondence received, states that his view regarding the need to remove the order remains unchanged and that he still supports the proposed revocation. He also states that he is mindful of the residents' concerns and if additional traffic management measures could be introduced, then he would be prepared to discuss the detail of any proposed scheme that would achieve the objectives of all concerned.

Conclusion
The Police have expressed a legitimate road safety concern, regarding potential turning manoeuvres outside the school, should the order be enforced. Observation has shown that significant numbers of school pupils' parents ignore the current Order and drive straight through the restricted section of St Peters Road, when collecting or dropping off their children. Typically vehicles are parked along the entire length of the road, at the beginning and end of the school day. On street parking levels drop off significantly at other times. Should the Police enforce the current Order then the restricted length would be respected and subsequent 3 point turns would occur outside the school and in the turning area causing a safety problem. This safety concern would be addressed by the revocation of this Order.

The section of St Peter's Road, from its junction with Blackmore Road to its junction with Cowleigh Bank, has a series of road humps and a road narrowing traffic calming feature. Following concern, raised by residents and the County Member, investigation has been undertaken to look into additional traffic calming features for St Peter's Road, funded by the North Site Developer highway improvement monies. Unfortunately, St Peter's Road is outside the area covered by the agreement.

Two speed measurement surveys have been undertaken, the first recorded an average speed of 16 mph, outside the school. A subsequent survey, near to Tanglewood Heights, recorded average 85th percentile speeds of 24.6 mph & 23.6 mph, for northbound & southbound vehicles respectively. The recorded speed data is typical of a traffic calmed area and demonstrates that the features work well in reducing vehicle speeds.

The two way 24 hour average vehicle flow was recorded as 403 vehicles. Further monitoring will be undertaken, should the revocation order be implemented.

Whilst objectors' concerns are acknowledged, the Police's views as enforcing authority must be given considerable weight. Enforcing the current restrictions could increase safety problems. Also, the evidence of the surveys indicates that speed levels are being reduced by the existing road layout, and there is nothing to indicate that this would not continue if the order was made. It is therefore considered that the risks of retaining the present restrictions outweigh those of revoking them. Accordingly, it is considered that the proposals should be implemented.

Recommendation


The Environmental Services Directorate recommends that the proposals are implemented without modification, as advertised.