Councillors and committees

Agenda item

ANNUAL PARKING REVIEW [EXECUTIVE FUNCTION - FOR DECISION]

Each year Surrey Highways receives requests to change existing or introduce new parking restrictions. These requests are compiled and reviewed in a borough wide process.

 

To progress the 2020 review the committee is asked to approve the formal advertisement of the county council’s intention to make the changes to on-street parking restrictions at the locations listed in the report annex.

 

 

Decision:

The Local Committee (Reigate and Banstead) agreed:

 

 i.       That the county council’s intention to introduce the proposals described in Annex 1, with the addition of the introduction of a goods vehicle loading bay in place of the current taxi rank outside Waitrose and a prohibition of loading at any time in front of the new assisted crossing point outside 98-100 in Banstead High Street, and the introduction of double yellow lines in all of Woodroyd Avenue and Oldfield Road, Horley,  is formally advertised, and subject to statutory consultation.

ii.       That if necessary, minor adjustments can be made to the proposals by the parking team manager in consultation with the chairman, vice- chairman and relevant county councillor prior to advertisement.

iii.       That if no objections are received when the proposals are advertised, the traffic regulation orders are made.

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

 

Reason for decisions:

 

The above decisions were made because changes to the highway network, the built environment and society mean that parking behaviour changes and consequently it is necessary for a highway authority to carry out regular reviews of waiting and parking restrictions on the highway network.

 

It was agreed that the waiting restrictions in the report are progressed for a number of reasons, including that they will help to:

 

·         Improve road safety

·         Increase access for emergency vehicles

·         Increase access for refuse vehicles, buses and service vehicles

·         Ease traffic congestion

·         Better control parking

Minutes:

Declarations of Interest: None

Officers Attending: Rikki Hill, Parking Project Team Leader (PPTL), SCC

Petitions, Public Questions and Statements: None

The PPTL introduced the report noting that there had been over 350 requests received for amendments to parking restrictions. He added it was a tough job to go through them all and reduce down to the final list, detailed in the report. He noted that the majority of proposals recommended for implementation were for safety reasons. 

He asked to draw members attentions to section 2.4 and 2.5 of the report in relation to large schemes. Noting that it wasn’t possible to produce large schemes in smaller roads in isolation as these schemes would only cause displacement to other roads and not resolve the issues. He suggested a job for the Parking Task Group would be to have a look at major parking controls in towns to recommend some possible solutions.

In addition to the proposals detailed in the report, the PPTL requested to add an additional proposal for Banstead. This was the introduction of a goods vehicle loading bay in place of the current taxi rank outside Waitrose and a prohibition of loading at any time in front of the new assisted crossing point outside 98-100 in Banstead High Street.

Key points from the discussion:

·         Members acknowledged that it was becoming more and more difficult to find places to park, particularly as restrictions continued to be implemented. They recognised work needed to be done to find solutions and it was suggested that perhaps the towns could all benefit from new multi storey car parks

·         There was some concern expressed about the Banstead High Street proposal.  As it was believed that the goods vehicle drivers would not use the designated loading bay because the location of this was less convenient. It was requested this be kept under review in the case it did not have the desired outcome.

·         A specific question was raised about the proposals in Oakwood Road, Horley, because residents were expressing concern over the amount of double yellow lines (DYL) being proposed. It was confirmed that individual schemes could be tweaked following the 28 day public consultation and that residents views would be taken in to account.

·         It was noted there was likely to be a delay in advertising the proposals, given the latest Government announcement about a second lockdown. The PPTL stated it would not be fair to put up adverts in locations where people currently weren’t parking because of the lockdown, but otherwise would be. This would not allow them the opportunity to respond to a consultation or be aware of any change until the change was implemented.

 

·         The divisional member made a request for some intervention on Woodroyd Avenue, Horley. He explained that residents were having a torrid time in respect of taxis. He noted that there were some DYLs in place but these were not being respected. He added it was well known that displacement was a problem with taxi drivers in the town, particularly due to being in close proximity to Gatwick Airport. Taxis frequently parked in the suburban areas and waited around. He explained that the residents had been subjected to antisocial behaviour from taxi drivers at all times of night and there needed to be a further deterrent to improve matters for residents. He concluded there was sufficient off road parking in the roads of Woodroyd Avenue and Oldfield Road for full DYLs to be considered all over.

 

·         Members thanked the officer for all this work and the comprehensive report, but noted that improved enforcement was needed otherwise any implemented restrictions were pointless.

 

Resolution:

 

The Local Committee (Reigate and Banstead) agreed:

 

 i.       That the county council’s intention to introduce the proposals described in Annex 1, with the addition of the introduction of a goods vehicle loading bay in place of the current taxi rank outside Waitrose and a prohibition of loading at any time in front of the new assisted crossing point outside 98-100 in Banstead High Street, and the introduction of double yellow lines in all of Woodroyd Avenue and Oldfield Road, Horley,  is formally advertised, and subject to statutory consultation.

ii.       That if necessary, minor adjustments can be made to the proposals by the parking team manager in consultation with the chairman, vice- chairman and relevant county councillor prior to advertisement.

iii.       That if no objections are received when the proposals are advertised, the traffic regulation orders are made.

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

 

Reason for decisions:

 

The above decisions were made because changes to the highway network, the built environment and society mean that parking behaviour changes and consequently it is necessary for a highway authority to carry out regular reviews of waiting and parking restrictions on the highway network.

 

It was agreed that the waiting restrictions in the report are progressed for a number of reasons, including that they will help to:

 

·         Improve road safety

·         Increase access for emergency vehicles

·         Increase access for refuse vehicles, buses and service vehicles

·         Ease traffic congestion

·         Better control parking

Supporting documents: