Councillor Leslie Ayoola

Councillor Josh Cook – personal

Councillor Azad Choudhry - unwell

Councillor Georgina Culley – unwell

Councillor Sue Johnson – other Council business

Councillor Neghat Khan – other Council business

Councillor Ginny Klein – other Council business

 

Beverley Frost

None

To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 8 February 2017

The minutes of the meeting held on 8 February 2017 were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.

Report of the Corporate Director for Strategy and Resources

In addition to the written information circulated with the agenda, the Committee received the following verbal updates at the meeting:

 

John Bann, Cycling and Roadspace Transformation Manager, and Keith Morgan, Principal Transport Planner – Cycling and Roadspace Transformation, Nottingham City Council, presented the Committee with the following information in relation to the cycle programme for the city:

 

(a)  the vision for Nottingham includes:

·  a world class cycling network;

·  cycle proofing the city for future generations;

·  investing in cycling at a higher level - £10 per head;

·  catering for all types of cyclists;

·  the production of design standards;

 

(b)  the local cycle design guide was published in January 2016 and includes:

·  a statement of intent/political will;

·  local examples/relevance;

·  a need for consistency/high quality design;

·  innovation;

·  the possibility for regular updates;

·  cost effectiveness;

 

(c)  the proposed commuter cycle corridors were developed as part of the second action plan in 2011, and includes 14 routes in to the city as well as an orbital route;

 

(d)  work on cycle corridors has been ongoing for the last two years, following the allocation of £6.1m from the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership as the result of a successful bid;

 

(e)  the Southern Cycle Corridor has been developed alongside the tram line extension and, although there is some improvement needed, it is a good facility;

 

(f)  the Western Cycle Corridor which runs from Nottingham Castle to Beeston is a cycle superhighway with dedicated space for cyclists. It is an innovative design for the city, with dedicated cycle lights at junctions with traffic lights, and a new type of road crossing that prioritises cyclists and pedestrians. Since the scheme was finished there has been an 18-25% increase in the number of cyclists using the Corridor;

 

(g)  the Eastern Cycle Corridor is the Eco Expressway and runs from Manvers Street in the city centre to Colwick. It is a mix of shared space with pedestrians and dedicated footpath space for cyclists;

 

(h)  the Ring Road has been used as a cycle route for a number of years. Some resurfacing work was undertaken as part of the recent improvement programme, with cyclists being given priority at junctions;

 

(i)  as part of the redevelopment of Broadmarsh Collin Street will be pedestrianised, but allow cyclists. Canal Street will be closed to general traffic and only allow buses, cyclists, and relevant access;

 

(j)  the new roads around the Enterprise Zone will have cycling provision, and new cycling routes will be introduced throughout the site;

 

(k)  a Nottingham Derby Access Fund Bid for 2017/18 – 2019/20 is a joint project with Derby to create:

·  personalised journey planning;

·  5 cycle centres;

·  Cycle Live;

·  a road user respect code;

·  grants to businesses;

·  job seeker support;

 

(l)  over the next 5 years there will be:

·  an updated Cycling Action Plan and Cycle Strategy;

·  encouragement of cycle proofing in all teams;

·  continued work with the Local Enterprise Partnership on funding;

·  investigation of funding opportunities for a Cycle Walking Infrastructure Strategy and a Local Cycle Walking Infrastructure Plan;

·  major redevelopment of Broadmarsh, the Eastside, the Island Site and The Guildhall;

·  enhanced cycle routes on the trunk network;

·  a Cycle Excellence exchange programme.

 

Gary Smerdon-White, Sustainable Travel Collective, provided the Committee with the following information:

 

(m)  there has been good development in cycling provision over recent years;

 

(n)  the Council has done well to secure the amount of funding it has received, but it is still minimal compared to funding for London of £156m which equates to £17 per head;

 

(o)  it is important to consider how all road/footpath users have to interact to make schemes work;

 

(p)  a cultural change is needed, but revenue funding for this is required which is difficult to sustain;

 

(q)  previously cycle training used to be available to anyone for free, but this has changed due to the reduction in funding.

 

Hugh McClintock, Pedals, provided the Committee with the following information:

 

(r)  the Council’s commitment to better standards of cycling provision is welcome, but it is important that it is consistent;

 

(s)  the new cycle corridors are useful and will improve when they are linked to the city centre;

 

(t)  it is important that Nottingham City Council, Nottinghamshire County Council and Highways England work closely together to improve trunk roads and make them safer for cyclists;

 

(u)  cycling provision should be included in new housing developments to ensure that they link with existing provision;

 

(v)  congestion and pollution can be addressed through the promotion of active travel – cycling and walking;

 

(w)  electronic bikes are used in other countries and would be beneficial to the cycling culture in the UK;

 

(x)  some of the existing cycling provision is poor and needs to be upgraded;

 

(y)  more effective speed limits need to be extended and enforced, especially where there isn’t dedicated cycle provision.

 

Mark Roxburgh, Highways England, provided the Committee with the following information:

 

(z)  Nottingham has the most progressive sustainable transport programme in the East Midlands;

 

(aa)  there is a new model of working at Highways England which now has more of a focus on cycling, but there is limited funding available;

 

(bb)  funding has been allocated for improvement works on the A52 and A453;

 

(cc)  Highways England is keen to engage and maintain its relationships with local authorities to ensure cycle provision is improved.

 

In response to questions from the Committee, John Bann, Keith Morgan, Gary Smerdon-White, Hugh McClintock, and Mark Roxburgh provided the following additional information:

 

(dd)  young people aged 4 to 9 have off-road cycle training, and young people from 9 onwards are trained on quiet roads;

 

(ee)  the width of the Western Cycle Corridor has been commented on by motorists, but 1,000 cyclists per day use it so it is important that it is high quality. Although there is currently congestion on the route this will reduce when the Broadmarsh development takes place and traffic is directed via the southern relief route. To help with congestion until the Broadmarsh development takes place Abbey Bridge Island is being altered to increase capacity and ease traffic flow;

 

(ff)  the lack of continuity in the network is being addressed through development work, but is long-term and dependent on funding;

 

(gg)  a budget has been allocated for maintenance of the new routes, but it is hoped that once the new style junctions are embedded the green paint used to highlight them won’t be needed and maintenance costs will reduce;

 

(hh)  there were proposals to ban turning left on to Castle Bridge Road, but this has been changed through the introduction of lights and signage. The use of this is being monitored and the proposals may be reintroduced after the Broadmarsh area has been developed;

 

(ii)  £500,000 of EU funding has been secured for a cycle route which follows the River Leen, but standards need to be improved first so scheme proposals are currently being drawn up;

 

(jj)  the design guide enables roads to have individual approaches depending on the space available, and all proposals are consulted on;

 

(kk)  further engagement is needed with other road/footpath users to educate them on how to use shared space. People often perceive changes as anti-car so it’s important to ensure the reasons for making the changes are clear;

 

(ll)  some one way streets permit cyclists to use it in both directions and, where this change happens, the signage will be updated to make it clear;

 

(mm)  the scheme on Aspley Lane that has a cycle lane beside parking bays is historic and was introduced prior to the publication of the design guide. The provision will be looked at, but there is currently no funding to change it;

 

(nn)  transport money has diminished and there is lots of competition for it. Use of the local Area Capital Fund could be a way of making improvements in specific areas;

 

(oo)  cycling across the city centre isn’t easy due to the Market Square and tram lines, but this should be part of a future scheme to be developed;

 

(pp)  some parks have cycle routes through them, but there is a balance to be struck between the safety of the other park users and the cyclists.

 

RESOLVED to

 

(1)  thank all of the guests for their participation in the meeting;

 

(2)  monitor the targets and outputs detailed in the Nottingham Cycle City Action Plan 2016/17-2020/21;

 

(3)  request that the cycling provision on Aspley Lane is investigated;

 

(4)  request that Councillors consider using local Area Capital Fund money to contribute towards improving cycling provision.

Report of the Corporate Director for Strategy and Resources

Laura Wilson, Senior Governance Officer, introduced the report detailing the Select Committee terms of reference for the inquiry into local government overview and scrutiny, and the proposed response from the Committee.

 

RESOLVED to approve the proposed response for submission as written evidence for the inquiry from the Committee.

 

 

Report of the Corporate Director for Strategy and Resources

Laura Wilson, Senior Governance Officer introduced the report setting out that the last meeting of the municipal year will focus on developing the work programme for the 2017/18 municipal year.

 

RESOLVED to agree the work programme.