Agenda, decisions and minutes

Minutes of the meeting held on 27 June 2022 (previously circulated).

RESOLVED that the Minutes of the meeting held on 27 June 2022 be signed as a correct record.

RESOLVED that the Minutes of the meeting held on 27 June 2022 be signed as a correct record.

Item which in the opinion of the Chairman should be considered at the meeting as matters of urgency.

No item was raised as a matter of urgency.

No item was raised as a matter of urgency.

Presentation

Link to Councillors’ Dashboard Landing:

Councillor Dashboard Landing Page - Power BI

Link to public webpages:

Collision & Casualty Data - Roads and transport (devon.gov.uk)

RESOLVED to note the presentation and information regarding the councillors’ dashboard and public webpages on collision and casualty data.

The Committee received a presentation by the Director of Climate Change, Environment and Transport on a website dashboard which provided detailed information on road casualty data in Devon at Devon-wide, District/Parish/ Town Council and electoral division levels.

The Committee were shown how to use the Councillor Dashboard and the wide range of different detailed information and data available to them about collisions on public roads. Members were informed of a video guide on the page which they could watch to show them how to use the site.

Link to Councillors’ Dashboard Landing:

Councillor Dashboard Landing Page - Power BI

Link to public webpages:

Collision & Casualty Data - Roads and transport (devon.gov.uk)

Members’ questions and discussion points with the Officers included:

·       There were links to the public dashboards on the site

·       The data captured on the site was for a rolling 5 year period containing the latest published data available. Each year this is updated around July.

·       Collision data was collected from the police and error checked by road safety officers before being sent to the Department of Transport for publishing annually.

·       For more recent current year collisions or for any help and support, then members can contact the Road Safety Team on roadsafetyhelpdesk-mailbox@devon.gov.uk

·       Information on the dashboard summarises various factors such as distances from home for injury collisions and the reasons or contributory factors for the incidents such as human errors, problems with the road or vehicle defects.

·      Most collision records are recorded by police officers at the scene. But some are self-reported by the public and then interpreted by the police

·       The data also showed trends via red or green arrows for up and down and there were red flags to highlight any significant changes

·       People using mobile phones when involved in collisions might not always been captured in the data as this might not be witnessed or people might choose not to inform the police they were doing so.

·       Road features like bends or road condition are identified under the road environment contributory factors

·       Road environment was not normally a major factor in most collisions within Devon.

·       Pedestrians involved in collisions and whether this was more of a problem in urban areas. Urban areas have a higher concentration of pedestrian conflicts and injuries.

·       More work was underway to enable the dashboards to be interrogated for contributing factors so that there could be more cross referencing e.g. pedestrians involved and impaired by alcohol.

·       Members were informed they are able to give detailed information from the dashboard at Parish or Town Council meetings but were asked not to provide hard or electronic copies of this

·       It is intended that information on the collision Cluster Sites shown on the dashboard will also be improved to show whether they are being investigated monitored or if improvements are planned.

·       Clarification about the Vision Zero South West Partnership which worked as a collective to reduce fatal and serious road casualties in the Devon and Cornwall area to zero.

·       How the Partnership operates and how  ...  view the full minutes text for item 31.

Report of the Director of Climate Change, Environment and Transport (CET/22/70), attached.

It was MOVED by Councillor Yabsley and SECONDED by Councillor Davis and RESOLVED that:

a)    A report is taken to Cabinet seeking the approval for the Barnstaple with Bideford and Northam Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan (BBN LCWIP), contained in Appendix 1, including measures estimated at a cost of £78m; and

b)    the Director of Climate Change, Environment and Transport be given delegated powers, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Highway Management, to make alterations to the Plan.

The Committee considered the Report of the Director of Climate Change, Environment and Transport (CET/22/70) on the Barnstaple with Bideford and Northam (BBN) Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP).

The Barnstaple with Bideford and Northam (BBN) LCWIP seeks to outline the focus of future walking and cycling investment in the Barnstaple, Bideford and Northam area over the next 10-20 years. It is an ambitious plan of four walking areas and six cycling routes that aims to transform northern Devon, as shown illustratively on the map in the report and in detail in Appendix 1.

Priority has been given to improvements that are most likely to have the greatest impact on increasing the number of people who choose to walk and cycle, and therefore the greatest return on investment. However, other factors have also influenced the prioritisation of improvements such as the deliverability of the proposed works. The schemes are at a very early stage of development and these costs will change as the scheme designs are developed further.

Members’ comments and discussion points with the Officers included:

·       Public consultation had recently been carried out which had resulted in a very good response with 385 completed questionnaires and strong support of over 80%

·       Priority was given to improvements that are most likely to have the greatest impact on increasing the number of people who choose to walk and cycle

·       Concerns were raised about the Shieling Road as part of the Yelland to Barnstaple route, which had resulted in a number of negative comments and it was suggested this should be deleted from the proposals

·       Request for a site meeting in due course to discuss further to make sure the Council is able to deliver a safe and coherent network.

·       The ability to deliver quick wins from the proposals, recognising that the larger schemes will take much longer to deliver

·       Costs of the work so far were estimated to be around £60k which covered the public consultation

·       Recognising the cycling culture in the Barnstaple area.

·       The need to manage public expectations as some of the proposals would take many years to deliver.

·       Officers were praised for the work and excellent engagement with the community.

It was MOVED by Councillor Yabsely and SECONDED by Councillor Davis and RESOLVED that

a)    A report is taken to Cabinet seeking the approval for the Barnstaple with Bideford and Northam Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan (BBN LCWIP), contained in Appendix 1, including measures estimated at a cost of £78m; and

b)    the Director of Climate Change, Environment and Transport be given

delegated powers, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Highway Management, to make alterations to the Plan.

[An item to be taken under s18 of the Traffic Management Act 2004 relating to any reviews of parking policy sought in line with the Council’s Petition Scheme.]

There were none.

There was no petition from a member of the public or the Council relating to the North Devon district.

Report of the Director of Climate Change, Environment and Transport (CET/22/71), attached.

RESOLVED that the report be noted.

The Committee received the Report of the Director of Climate Change, Environment and Transport (CET/22/71) on delegated decisions taken since the last meeting.

It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.

The next meeting is on 6 February 2023.

Future dates can be found at Council's Calendar of Meetings.

Next meeting: 6 February 2023. The Clerk was asked to check this and report back to the Committee.

Council's Calendar of Meetings.