Agenda and minutes

There were no disclosable pecuniary interests.

(a)  To agree the minutes of the meeting held on 8^th November 2024

(b)  Matters Arising

The minutes of the meeting held on 8^th November 2024 were agreed and signed as a true record.

There were no matters arising.

Report of the Director of City Services and Commercial 

Petition 32/23 and e44/23 – Clifford Bridge Road Cycle Lane Development

To consider the above petitions bearing 1510 signatures (paper petition 32/23, 1420 signatures, e-petition e44/23, 90 signatures).  The petition has been sponsored by Councillor F Abbott, a Wyken Ward Councillor, who has been invited to the meeting for the consideration of this item along with the Petition Organiser.

e-petition e17/24-25 - Save the Trees on the Clifford Bridge Road

To consider the above petition bearing 4273 signatures.  The petition has been sponsored by Councillor F Abbott, a Wyken Ward Councillor and Councillor J Blundell, a Wainbody Ward Councillor, who have been invited to the meeting for the consideration of this item along with the Petition Organiser.

(Officers:  M O'Connell/John Seddon)

The Cabinet Member for City Services considered a report of the Director of City Services and Commercial, relating to the remaining section of the Binley Cycleway to be completed along Clifford Bridge Road, between its junction with B4027 Brinklow Road and its junction with Dorchester Way. The consideration of the report also included responding to two petitions, one relating to the proposed Cycleway and one relating to tree felling along the Clifford Bridge Road.

Binley Cycleway, including a section along Clifford Bridge Road, was identified as a strategic cycle route connecting Coventry City Centre with the University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire (UHCW) via Binley Business Park within the West Midlands Local Walking and Cycling Infrastructure Plan (WM LCWIP).  Funding to construct the Cycleway was secured from the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) and Active Travel England (ATE) from the Transforming Cities Fund, Active Travel Fund Tranche 2, Active Travel Fund 3 and Active Travel Fund 4.

Most of the Binley Cycleway had been completed, including the additional section, funded through Active Travel Fund 4, connecting Allard Way to the New Century Park residential estate.  The remaining section to be completed was along Clifford Bridge Road, between its junction with B4027 Brinklow Road and its junction with Dorchester Way.

This remaining section had been subject to four specific rounds of consultation and engagement between 2021 and 2024. The final scheme design had been reviewed by Active Travel England (ATE) and Travel for West Midlands (TfWM).

Following the November 2023 Cabinet Member report, the engagement in January 2024, and advertisement of associated Notice of Proposals (NOP), Notices of Intent (NOI) and Tree Felling Notices (TFN), 178 representations were received across the Notices.

The scheme had generated a lot of public interest, which was why four rounds of engagement had been held whilst developing the proposals, and a wide range of views had been expressed.  These included the identification of alternative routes that could be taken for the Cycleway, avoiding this section of Clifford Bridge Road, and comments on detailed aspects of the scheme design, such as the impact on car parking, access to driveways and side roads, pedestrian safety, vehicle speeds, access to the Hospital and the need to deliver high quality cycle routes to encourage cycling.  Officers have ensured that the final scheme proposals responded to these key items whilst achieving the objective of delivering a high-quality cycle route, linking the Hospital area with Binley, which would complete the Binley Cycleway.

Once the Clifford Bridge Road (Section 7) was completed, the full Binley Cycleway, would provide a spine route from which further routes could link, with future route options including Hipswell Highway, a connection to Coombe Abbey Park, and a link through Binley to Willenhall and the cycleway along London Road, the first section of which was currently under construction. This section of cycleway was part of a wider network being developed that would link residential areas with key employment sites, education and healthcare facilities, and transport interchanges and would encourage  ...  view the full minutes text for item 35.

Report of the Director of City Services and Commercial

To consider the above petition bearing 11 signatures. The petition is being sponsored by Councillor S Nazir, a Foleshill Ward Councillor who, along with the Petition Organiser, has been invited to the meeting for the consideration of this item.

E-petition e23/24-25 also refers and has 7 signatures.  The Petition Organiser has been invited to the meeting for consideration of this item.

E-petition e14/24-25 Silverton Road Parking Permits also refers and has 114 signatures.  The Petition Organiser has been invited to the meeting for consideration of this item.

(Officer: M Wilkinson)

The Cabinet Member for City Services considered a report of the Director of City Services and Commercial, which responded to a petition requesting a residents parking area on part of the Stoney Stanton Road.

A petition with 11 signatures had been received requesting a residents’ parking scheme outside 673 to 693 Stoney Stanton Road. A second related petition with 114 signatures had also been received requesting the extension of the adjacent Zone EW1 residents’ parking scheme on Bryn Road and Crabmill Lane to include Silverton Road. A previous parking survey showed that Silverton Road met the parking availability criteria (less than 40% of spaces available during the weekday daytime) for a residents’ parking scheme. Therefore, the request met all three criteria required for a residents' parking scheme to be considered, as set out in the Council’s Residents’ Parking Policy.

On receipt of the Determination Letters, the Petition Organisers advised they wanted the issue to be considered at a Cabinet Member for City Services meeting.

The cost of introducing residents’ parking schemes was funded from the Highways Maintenance and Investment Capital Programme budget through the Local Transport Plan.

Councillor S Nazir and the Petition Organiser spoke in support of the petition, highlighting their concerns, including the following:

• There was no parking for residents on Stoney Stanton Road and Silverton Road due to businesses parking their cars on the roadside.
• Residents were incurring parking tickets.
• Industrial waste bins meant accessibility to and along the pavements was poor.
• A degree of flexibility was required to allow businesses to park on Stoney Stanton Road during the day and residents to park in the evenings.

Officers responded, advising of the need to be mindful of the potential impact on businesses and that residents of Stoney Stanton Road could park in Crabmill Lane and Silverton Road, if space was available.

RESOLVED that the Cabinet Member for City Services:

1)  Considered the petitions summarised above.

2)  Approves the advertising of Traffic Regulation Orders as part of the next review of waiting restrictions to:

·  Extend the Zone EW1 residents’ parking scheme to include Silverton Road.

·  Make 673 – 693 Stoney Stanton Road eligible to apply for parking permits for Zone EW1.

·  Amend the waiting restriction outside 673 – 693 Stoney Stanton Road to make it shared-use (Limited Waiting Mon-Fri, 8am-6pm, 1 hour, no return within 2 hours / Permit Holders EW1 Only Mon-Fri, 8am-6pm).

Report of the Director of Commercial and City Services

The Cabinet Member for City Services considered a report of the Director of City Services in respect of petitions received relating to the portfolio of the Cabinet Member.

In June 2015, amendments to the Petitions Scheme, which forms part of the Constitution, were approved in order to provide flexibility and streamline current practice.  This change had reduced costs and bureaucracy and improved the service to the public.

These amendments allow for a petition to be dealt with or responded to by letter without being formally presented in a report to a Cabinet Member meeting.

In light of this, at the meeting of the Cabinet Member for Public Services on 15 March 2016, it was approved that a summary of those petitions received which were determined by letter, or where decisions are deferred pending further investigations, be reported to subsequent meetings of the Cabinet Member for Public Services (now amended to Cabinet Member for City Services), where appropriate, for monitoring and transparency purposes.

Appendix A to the report set out petitions received and how officers proposed to respond to them.

RESOLVED that the Cabinet Member for City Services endorses the actions being taken by officers as set out in Section 2 and Appendix A of the report in response to the petitions received.

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.