Agenda and minutes

Venue: Diamond Room 2 - Council House. View directions

Contact: Liz Knight / Michelle Salmon, Governance Services Officers,  Tel: 024 7697 2644 /2643, Email:  liz.knight@coventry.gov.uk /  michelle.salmon@coventry.gov.uk

Items
No. Item

37.

Declarations of Interests

Minutes:

There were no disclosable pecuniary interests.

38.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 71 KB

Minutes:

The minutes of the meeting held on 9th September 2019 were agreed and signed as a true record.

39.

Petition - Deterioration of Road Surface in Walton Close pdf icon PDF 962 KB

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Place)

 

To consider the above petition, bearing 21 signatures, which has been submitted by Councillor R Lakha, a Binley and Willenhall Ward Councillor, who has been invited to the meeting for the consideration of this item along with the petition organiser.

Minutes:

The Cabinet Member for City Services considered a report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Place) in response to a petition, bearing 21 signatures, received from a Binley Ward resident and supported by Councillor R Lakha, a Binley and Willenhall Ward Councillor, that read ‘Deterioration of road surface in Walton Close’. Councillor Lakha and the Petition Organiser attended the meeting for consideration of the matter and to speak on behalf of the petitioners.

 

In accordance with the City Council's procedure for dealing with petitions, those relating to highway maintenance were heard by the Cabinet Member for City Services. 

 

The report indicated that Walton Close was a local residential cul-de-sac, part of which served as an access road for garages. A plan of the location was attached as an Appendix to the report. Records showed that the last annual programmed safety inspection took place on the 28th February 2019, at which time no intervention level was identified. There had also been no customer enquiries made regarding the road condition in the past 12 months.

 

Following receipt of the petition an engineer made a visit on 15th August 2019 to further assess the construction and overall condition of the road and pavements. The road was a traditional tarmac construction, the main carriageway section had been subject to a surface treatment some time ago. The garage area, which was not subject to this treatment, was showing signs of deterioration. The pavements were of a slab construction. Both the road and pavements were aged and although not aesthetically pleasing at the time of inspection there were no intervention level defects identified. Following the engineer’s assessment, the recommended treatment was to repair the areas of deterioration by localised patching and application of a surface treatment over the whole area to prevent the ingress of water and prevent further deterioration. If a priority score was reached by the Council’s Asset Management System, they would be included in a future capital funded improvement programme if the budget permitted. Until such time, any defects at or above the intervention level as identified would continue to be made safe.

 

Councillor Lakha and the Petition Organiser spoke in support of the petitioners. They referred to the extremely poor condition of parts of Walton Close due to the heavy usage of the Close by parents picking up and dropping off children at the nearby School. The road surface was subject to a great deal of parking and also vehicles turning and although part of the road had been re-surfaced, the centre of the road and the entrance to the cul-de-sac were in particularly bad condition. Although the report indicated that no customer enquiries had been made regarding the road condition, Councillor Lakha confirmed that many residents had raised the issue directly with him. He felt that the Inspectors assessment of the road surface detailed in the report, did not reflect the severity of its condition and that the Close deserved high priority status on the Council’s Forward Programme List. The Petition Organiser  ...  view the full minutes text for item 39.

40.

Objection to Proposed Waiting Restrictions - Browns Lane pdf icon PDF 176 KB

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Place)

 

Note: The objector has been invited to the meeting for the consideration of this item

Minutes:

Further to Minute 32/19, the Cabinet Member received a report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Place) concerning an objection to a proposed waiting restriction for Brown’s Lane that had been advertised in a Traffic Regulation Order. The Cabinet Member was informed that the objector was unable to attend the meeting for the consideration of this item and had requested that the item be deferred until the next meeting to allow for his attendance in support of his objection.

 

RESOLVED that consideration of the report be deferred until the next Cabinet Member for City Services meeting scheduled for 2nd December 2019 to allow the objector the opportunity to attend in support of his objection.

41.

Revise the Current Conditions for Private Hire Drivers, Private Hire Proprietors, Hackney Carriage Proprietors and Pedicabs & Tuk Tuks Proprietors to Ensure that when the Vehicle(s) are Working there are Functioning Facilities for Taking Cashless Payments. pdf icon PDF 120 KB

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Place)

Minutes:

The Cabinet Member considered a report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Place) that sought approval of additional conditions as set out in the report, for the provision of facilities for private hire drivers, private hire proprietors, hackney carriage proprietors and pedicab and tuk tuk proprietors to take cashless payments. Appendices to the report set out current conditions of licence for those vehicles.

 

With the growth of cashless payments and the UK having the highest revenue in cashless payments in the European Union, and with most of the population not carrying cash, it was reasonable to ensure that private hire and hackney carriage vehicles had facilities to offer cashless payments if required by the passenger. 

 

RESOLVED that the Cabinet Member for City Services approves that the proposed additional conditions detailed in the report be brought into effect so that private hire drivers, private hire proprietors, hackney carriage proprietors and pedicabs and tuk tuk proprietors ensure that when the vehicle(s) are working there are functioning facilities for taking cashless payments.

42.

Petitions Determined by Letter and Petitions Deferred Pending Further Investigations pdf icon PDF 71 KB

Report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Place)

Minutes:

The Cabinet Member for City Services considered a report of the Deputy Chief Executive (Place) which provided a summary of the recent Petitions received that were to be determined by letter, or where decisions had been deferred pending further investigations and holding letters were being circulated. Details of the individual Petitions were set out in an Appendix attached to the report and included target dates for action. The report was submitted for monitoring and transparency purposes.

 

The report indicated that each Petition had been dealt with on an individual basis, with the Cabinet Member considering advice from officers on appropriate action to respond to the petitioners’ request. When it had been decided to respond to the Petition without formal consideration at a Cabinet Member meeting, both the relevant Councillor sponsoring the Petition (if any) and/or the petition organiser/spokesperson could still request that their Petition be the subject of a Cabinet Member report.

 

Members noted that where holding letters were being sent, this was because further investigation work was required. Once matters had been investigated either a follow up letter would be sent, or a report submitted to a future Cabinet Member meeting.

 

RESOLVED that the actions being taken by officers as detailed in the Appendix to the report, in response to the Petitions received, be endorsed.

43.

Outstanding Issues

There are no outstanding issues

Minutes:

There were no outstanding issues.

44.

Any other items of Public Business

Any other items of public business which the Cabinet Member decides to take as matters of urgency because of the special circumstances involved

Minutes:

There were no other items of public business.