Agenda and minutes

There were no disclosable pecuniary interests.

The minutes of the meeting held on 14^th April 2021 were agreed as a true record. There were no matters arising.

Report of the Director of Transportation and Highways

To consider the above petition, bearing 459 e-signatures, which is being supported by Councillor Bailey, a Cheylesmore Ward Councillor, who has been invited to the meeting for the consideration of this item along with the petition organiser

The Cabinet Member for City Services considered a report of the Director of Transportation and Highways concerning an e-petition, bearing 459 signature, requesting that the previous layout of the parking bays at the Daventry Road Shopping Centre, be reinstated. The petition was supported by Councillor R Bailey, a Cheylesmore Ward Councillor, who, together with a representative of the Petition Organiser, attended the meeting and spoke on behalf of the petitioners.

The report indicated that, in accordance with the City Council's procedure for dealing with petitions, those relating to road safety were heard by the Cabinet Member for City Services. The Cabinet Member had considered the petition prior to this meeting and requested that the petition was dealt with by letter (determination letter) rather than a formal report being submitted to a meeting, to be able to deal with the matter more efficiently.

Daventry Road was a local distributor road between London Road and Leamington Road and was subject to a 30mph speed limit.  The shopping centre was located on a service road that ran parallel to Daventry Road between Queen Isabel’s Avenue and Quinton Road.  The service road was one-way running from Queen Isabel’s Avenue and Quinton Road.  It was located in the City’s Cheylesmore Ward. A location plan was attached as an Appendix to the report.

The determination letter advised that the changes to the configuration of the parking bays at the shopping centre were introduced on a temporary basis to facilitate social distancing. When social distancing guidance was withdrawn, local consultation would be undertaken to determine whether the temporary layout was made permanent or the previous layout was reinstated.

The cost of road safety measures was funded from the Highways Maintenance and Investment Capital Programme budget through the Local Transport Plan.

The representative of the Petition Organiser informed the Cabinet Member that the current parking layout caused particular problems for disabled people and children getting in and out of vehicles and opening doors into the path of pedestrians and/or on-coming traffic, due to the design of the parking. It had also resulted in a loss of spaces and vehicles were not parking within the marked bays.

Councillor Bailey referred to many adverse comments he had received from residents on this matter. He indicated that the current parking layout encouraged speeding as it provided a clear run for travelling vehicles. There was also an issue for vehicles turning into Quinton Road due to the layout of the parking spaces which were located close to end of the service road which provided little turning space. The street furniture located along the pavement next to the parking bays, made opening car doors very difficult and vans were parking across two spaces which exacerbated the limited number of spaces available further.

Having considered the report and the comments made by Councillor Bailey,  the representative of the Petition Organiser and the officer who presented the report, the Cabinet Member agreed that once social distancing guidance was withdrawn, a local consultation would be undertaken  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

Report of the Director of Transportation and Highways

To consider the above petition, bearing 20 signatures (7 e-signatures and 13 paper signatures), which is being supported by Councillor Lancaster, a Holbrook Ward Councillor, who has been invited to the meeting for the consideration of this item along with the petition organiser

The Cabinet Member for City Services considered a report of the Director of Transportation and Highways concerning an e-petition, bearing 20 signatures, supported by Councillor Lancaster, a Holbrook Ward Councillor, who was unable to attend the meeting, that requested measures to facilitate verge parking on Malmesbury Road and Charlecote Road. The petition organiser was also unable to attend the meeting. Councillor Clifford, another Holbrook ward Councillor attending the meeting to speak on behalf of the petitioners.

In accordance with the City Council's procedure for dealing with petitions, those relating to road safety are heard by the Cabinet Member for City Services.  The Cabinet Member had considered the petition prior to this meeting and requested that the petition was dealt with by letter (determination letter) rather than a formal report being submitted to a meeting, to be able to deal with the matter more efficiently.

The determination letter advised that the roads highlighted had been added to the verge scheme request list, but that requests were prioritised in line with the Verge Protection Policy, which gave greater priority to roads on major routes.  On receipt of the determination letter, the petition organisers advised that they wanted the issue to be considered at a Cabinet Member for City Services meeting.

The cost of introducing verge protection measures was funded from the Highways Maintenance and Investment Capital Programme budget through the Local Transport Plan.

Councillor Clifford informed the Cabinet Member that this had been a longstanding issue and had had the involvement of all Holbrook Ward Councillors. He indicated that on-street parking in Malmesbury Road caused many problems and was particularly dangerous on the bend in the road. He gave an example of where a pavement crossing had been installed at an address in Malmesbury Road that had resulted in the grassed area being removed to enable vehicles to use the driveway at the property. Although residents enjoyed the green space and didn’t want the verge totally removed, they wanted to see if there were any solutions that would resolve their parking issues whilst maintaining the green space and would welcome the opportunity to discuss the matter.

Having considered the report and the comments made by Councillor Clifford and the officer who presented the report, the Cabinet Member agreed that officers liaise with residents to obtain further details on the issues, to determine if any additional assistance could be provided

RESOLVED that the Cabinet Member for City Services:

1)  Notes the petitioners’ concerns.

2)  Endorses the actions confirmed by determination letter to the petition organisers, as detailed in paragraph 1.5 of the report.

3)  Requests that officers liaise with residents to obtain further details on the issues, to determine if any additional assistance can be provided.

Report of the Director of Transportation and Highways

To consider the above petition, bearing 14 signatures. The petition organiser has been invited to the meeting for the consideration of this item

The Cabinet Member for City Services considered a report of the Director of Transportation and Highways concerning a petition, bearing 14 signatures, requesting a reduction in the speed limit on the A444 between Binley Road and Heath Crescent, to reduce the disturbance caused by traffic noise.

In accordance with the City Council's procedure for dealing with petitions, those relating to road safety are heard by the Cabinet Member for City Services.  The Cabinet Member had considered the petition prior to this meeting and requested that the petition was dealt with by letter (determination letter) rather than a formal report being submitted to a meeting, to be able to deal with the matter more efficiently.

The determination letter advised that there were currently no proposals to change the speed limit on the A444, which was determined in line with national guidance according to the nature of the road. The letter recommended that, if the noise of vehicles travelling on the A444 was creating a disturbance, the petitioners should contact the developer of the estate to request measures to shield their properties from the traffic noise.

The cost of road safety measures was funded from the Highways Maintenance and Investment Capital Programme budget through the Local Transport Plan.

The Petition Organiser referred to the traffic noise experienced by residents whose properties were part of the estate that bordered a section of the A444. She indicated that this road had heavy and often speeding traffic 24 hour per day, 7 days per week, which was having an adverse effect on residents and in particular, disturbed their children’s’ sleep. She requested that an extension to the 30mph speed limit on part of the A444 to the include the section where properties were located would help the situation. She also indicated that residents had been unsuccessful in securing any further assistance with noise protection from the developers of the estate.

Having considered the report and the comments made by the petition organiser and the officer who presented the report, the Cabinet Member agreed that officers contact the developers of the housing estate bordering the section of the A444 to see if they were able to provide any further assistance to residents regarding noise insulation at their properties.

RESOLVED that the Cabinet Member for City Services:

1)  Notes the petitioners’ concerns

2)  Endorses the actions confirmed by determination letter to the petition organisers as detailed in paragraph 1.5 of the report.

3)  Requests that officers contact the developers of the housing estate bordering the section of the A444 to see if they are able to provide any further assistance to residents regarding noise insulation at their properties.

Report of the Director of Transportation and Highways

The Cabinet Member for City Services considered a report of the Director of Transportation and Highways that sought approval to award the concession contract and execute all necessary legal documents with the successful tenderer, for the On-street Residential Chargepoint Scheme.

Coventry was at the cutting edge of the automotive industry and a leader in innovation. Electric vehicles lay at the heart of this development and following a number of successful bids, the city council had installed over 200 residential electric chargepoints city wide. A further 200 chargepoints were currently being installed and would be operational by end of April 2021. The programme was intended to future-proof the city’s transport infrastructure for the increase in electric vehicle ownership in line with national Government policy, with the Government having committed to ending sales of new diesel- and petrol-powered vehicles from 2030.

In line with this commitment, the Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (OZEV) had allocated £20m of funding for on-street residential chargepoint projects. The funding available was for 75% of the capital costs of procuring and installing the chargepoints and associated dedicated parking bays (where applicable). This funding had been made available to Local Authorities in a grant agreement format.

The scheme was intended to meet the needs of residents and therefore the requirement from OZEV was that the chargepoints must be installed in residential areas where there was limited access to off-road private parking.

The Council had over the past three years successfully submitted four funding applications to OZEV securing grant funding to the value of £1,446,010. This funding was being used to install a mix of slow and fast chargepoints on residential streets across the city.

There was still the opportunity for the Council to bid for additional funding from OZEV, however, the current Charge Point Operator (CPO) contract had now come to an end and a new CPO needed to be procured. The intention was to publish tender documents to the value of £1.5 million (over a two-year period) which would allow the Council to bid for additional funding when it became available and allow the Council to explore a fully funded option by the CPO. A Proc 2 was submitted to Procurement Board and was approved on 24th February 2021.

Tender documents for a concession contract were published on 9th June 2021 with a return date of 9th July 2021.

RESOLVED that the Cabinet Member for City Services:

1)  Following evaluation of received tenders, approves the award of a concession contract to the successful tenderer.

2)  Delegates authority to the Director for Transportation and Highways and the Director of Law and Governance to execute all necessary legal documents with the successful tenderer.

3)  Notes that the submission for grant funding is made to Office for Zero Emission Vehicle for up to £500,000 per year for the next two years, which will be used to install charge points if successful.

4)  Notes the advertisement of Experimental Traffic Regulation Orders (ETRO’s), Temporary Traffic Regulation  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

Report of the Director of Transportation and Highways

The Cabinet Member for City Services considered a report of the Director of Transportation and Highways that proposed the closure of Cox Street Car Park located next to the West Midlands Travel Ltd Bus Depot and Pool Meadow Bus Station, to accommodate an electric bus charging facility.

The Department for Transport (DfT) launched the All Electric Bus Town fund in February 2020, with £50 million in grant funding made available to allow one town or city within England to make the transition to a bus network operated fully by electric powered buses. The West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), as the strategic transport authority, submitted an Expression of Interest, which was developed by Coventry City Council in partnership with Warwickshire County Council, Transport for West Midlands and incumbent Coventry and Warwickshire bus operators.

Consideration of the full business case (FBC) was devolved from the DfT to the WMCA, which was now the accountable body for the Coventry and Warwickshire scheme. The FBC was approved by the WMCA board on 19^th March 2021 and the funding of £50 million was passported from the DfT to the WMCA on 31^st March 2021, allowing the project to proceed.

As a result, Coventry would see over 290 electric buses operating within the city by the end of 2025, supporting the Council’s objectives of a green economic recovery through the de-carbonisation of the city’s transport network, with an estimated emissions saving of around 24,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide and 55 tonnes of nitrogen dioxide per year.

To facilitate the electrification of the bus fleet, it was necessary to provide additional land in the vicinity of the West Midlands Travel Ltd Bus Depot and the Pool Meadow Bus Station to accommodate an electric bus charging facility. Cox Street Car Park, as shown on the plan at Appendix 1 to the report, was ideally located for this initiative and so it was proposed that the car park was closed to the public and the site re-purposed as a bus charging facility.

It was further proposed to stop up the length of public highway in Ford Street (shown on the plan in Appendix 2 to the report) which served as a public vehicular access to Cox Street Car Park. This was to facilitate seamless integration and access to the electric bus charging infrastructure. 

RESOLVED that the Cabinet Member for City Services:

1)  Approves the permanent closure of Cox Street car park.

2)  Subject to the approval of recommendation 1 above, approves that officers commence the legal process to remove Cox Street Car Park as identified edged in green on Plan A in Appendix 1 to the report, from the Off-Street Parking Places Order 2005.

3)  Approves that an application be made to the Magistrates’ Court for an Order stopping up the highway as identified on Plan B in Appendix 2 to the report and titled ‘Highways Act 1980, section 116 – Application to Stop Up part of Highway known as  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

There are no outstanding issues

There were no outstanding issues.

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

There were no other items of public business.