Issue - meetings

Report of the Director of Climate Change, Environment and Transport (CET/24/48) presenting Tranche 2 of the Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP), seeking approval for four capital schemes listed under the Individual

Scheme Delivery section of the BSIP, attached.

There are three separate Impact Assessments on the website, as follows (and attached).

Exeter Central & Eastern Bus Corridor Improvements - Impact Assessment  Newton Abbot Bus Service Improvement Plan - Impact Assessment

Braunton Road Bus Lane and Bus Priority Bypass - Impact Assessment

RESOLVED

(a) that the advertising of the traffic regulation orders necessary for the

schemes in the Report be approved and to make and seal the orders subject

to the requirements of the legislation and the council’s procedures;

(b) that subject to the resolution of the traffic regulation orders, the

construction of the Exeter Central Corridor scheme, as shown in Appendix 1,

be approved, at an estimated cost of £1,022,000;

(c) that subject to the resolution of the traffic regulation orders, the

construction of the Exeter Eastern Corridor scheme, as shown in Appendix 2,

be approved, at an estimated cost of £564,000;

(d) that subject to the resolution of the traffic regulation orders and the funding

sources being confirmed, that the construction of the Braunton Road,

Barnstaple scheme, as shown in Appendix 3, be approved, at an estimated

cost of £939,000;

(e) that the construction of the Newton Abbot scheme, as shown in Appendix

4, be approved, at an estimated cost of £245,000;

(f) that delegated authority is given to the Director of Climate Change,

Environment and Transport in consultation with the Cabinet Member for

Highway Management, the Cabinet Member for Climate Change,

Environment and Transport and the relevant Local Members to approve minor

changes to the schemes.

(Councillors Leaver and Whitton attended in accordance with Standing Order 25(2) and spoke to this item).

The Cabinet considered the Report of the Director of Climate Change, Environment and Transport (CET/24/48) which presented Tranche 2 of the Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP), and sought approval for four capital schemes listed under the Individual Scheme Delivery section of the BSIP. The Report had been circulated prior to the meeting in accordance with regulation 7(4) of the Local Authorities (Executive Arrangements) (Meetings and Access to Information) (England) Regulations 2012.

In 2021, the Government published its National Bus Strategy, which provided a pathway to help bus services improve following the COVID19 pandemic and required local transport authorities to form Enhanced Partnerships with bus operating companies, and to publish a Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP). The Council’s BSIP had been developed and subsequently approved by Cabinet on 13 October 2021.

In 2022, the Council had been allocated £14.1 million BSIP funding by the Department for Transport, which was split into capital (£8.8 million) and revenue (£5.3 million). The funding was for a three-year period from 2022/23 to 2024/25 with all schemes subject to final approval from the Department for Transport.

A Report had been approved by Cabinet in October 2023 to progress the first tranche of BSIP schemes in Exeter and Barnstaple and this covered the next tranche of capital schemes.

A refreshed BSIP had been submitted to the Department for Transport on 12 June 2024 which set out the future aspirations for bus provision in Devon, building on the capital scheme proposals detailed in the Report and the successful Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas (ZEBRA) bid, which secured £5.3 million funding to introduce electric buses in Northern Devon, Cranbrook and Exeter.

The Report sought approval to construct four capital schemes which included bus priority measures and technology improvements with the aim of achieving better bus journey times and reliability. These schemes were as follows, with maps and details in full at section 3 of the Report.

1.    Exeter Central Corridor and Exeter Eastern Corridor – the proposals comprised a mixture of technological and infrastructure improvements, as well as changes to the bus lane operation times.

2.    Newton Abbot – delivery of a range of technological interventions at existing signalised junctions and crossings within Newton Abbot Town Centre, to improve bus priority, corridor capacity and reduce bus journey times and delays.

3.    Braunton Road, Barnstaple - provided an improved 330m bus priority from Chaddiford Lane towards Barnstaple Town Centre along the A361 Braunton Road. The scheme would include upgrading the existing bus lane with fewer traffic lights to minimise delays for buses and improved pedestrian and cycle crossing facilities.

Various engagement activities had been undertaken for each of the schemes, including a public consultation for the Exeter and Barnstaple proposals, the full details of which were outlined in section 5.

The financial considerations were included at section 7, but Cabinet noted the BSIP funding was ringfenced for schemes identified within the BSIP. Changes to  ...  view the full minutes text for item 573