Agenda item

The recommendations in this report follow a comprehensive review of requests for new restrictions and will be presented by members of the Surrey County Council Parking Strategy and Implementation team.

The Runnymede Joint Committee agreed that:

(i) the proposed amendments to on-street parking restrictions in Runnymede as described in this report and shown in detail on drawings in annexes A-F are approved, with the exception of the Staple Hill and Longcross Road recommendation in section 3.5 of the report, approval for which is to be deferred pending further discussion at Cabinet.

(ii) the joint committee allocates funding as detailed in paragraph 5.1 of this report to proceed with the introduction of the parking amendments.

(iii)the intention of the county council to make an order under the relevant parts of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 to impose the waiting and on street parking restrictions in Runnymede as shown on the drawings in annexes A-F is advertised and that if no objections are maintained, the orders are made.

(iv)if there are unresolved objections, they will be dealt with in accordance with the county council’s scheme of delegation by the parking strategy and implementation team manager, in consultation with the chairman/ vice chairman of this committee and the appropriate county councillor.

Reasons for recommendations

It is recommended that the waiting restrictions are implemented as detailed in Annexes A-F. They will make a positive impact towards:

· Road safety

· Access for emergency vehicles

· Access for refuse vehicles

· Easing traffic congestion

· Better regulated parking

· Better enforcement

Declarations of Interest: None

Officers attending: Peter Wells, Engineer, Parking Strategy & Implementation Team, Surrey County Council

Petitions, Public Questions, Statements: None

Member Discussion – key points:

Mr Wells presented his report, which listed the changes to parking restrictions throughout the borough.

The question of enforcement was raised, with a request for the police and parking teams to take a particularly close interest in those areas with new restrictions for a period of time to give a clear message of the intent to enforce the new arrangements. It was recognised that different agencies are responsible for different aspects of parking enforcement, and that it would be a question of prioritising their work. Cllr Prescot agreed to follow up with officers at Runnymede Borough Council to get a clear understanding of where the responsibilities lie and what would impact on the ability to carry out the enforcement.

There was concern that new parking restrictions outside schools would be ignored. A number of potential hot-spots were mentioned, and Cllr Parr offered to email a list of these to Mr Wells. The officer stated that he liaises with local schools and encourages them to keep parents informed of parking issues through their newsletters; the borough is responsible for enforcement, with teams visiting schools approximately every six weeks – the Parking Services Manager for Runnymede would be able to give more detail regarding the schedule of visits, but it was noted that he is happy to send enforcement officers to a particular school if a request is made to his team directly.

The proposed new restrictions at Staple Hill and Longcross Road and their relationship to the recently introduced pay-to-park arrangement at Chobham Common were discussed. Cllr Few asked for this recommendation to be held back while he sought clarification from cabinet colleagues. Mr Wells reminded the committee that the location was on the border with Surrey Heath and the lines in question crossed onto both sides of the border.

Cllr Nuti thanked Mr Wells for his work in Chertsey division.

Resolved

The Joint Committee (Runnymede) agreed that: