Agenda item

Report of the Director of Transportation and Highways

The Cabinet Member considered a report of the Director of Transportation and Highways which sought approval to close and stop up a subway at Junction 7 to facilitate changes required by the local Air Quality Action Plan to reduce traffic on Holyhead Road and direct the traffic through a widened Spon End.

The report indicated that like many towns and cities throughout the UK, roadside pollution levels, especially those resulting from Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2) emissions from traffic, were a concern. The Council had been told by Government to reduce NO2 levels, especially on Holyhead Road where the levels were the highest in the city. If the Council couldn’t improve air quality then Government would force the Council to introduce a charging zone. 

The Council had developed a Local Air Quality Action Plan and consultation took place between March and May 2020. This plan included work to reduce traffic on Holyhead Road and to direct traffic through a widened Spon End. To do this, changes were required to three areas around Holyhead Road, including Spon End and Junction 7.

To facilitate the changes at Junction 7, it was necessary to close and infill the adjacent existing subways. One of the existing subways was designated as highway therefore it was proposed Stop Up this subway. Details of location were set out at an appendix to the report. The subway currently provided a route for pedestrians from Croft Road to Butts Road, beneath the Junction 7 / Moat Street car park traffic island. 

Upon completion of the proposed works, the re-aligned Junction 7 would accommodate pedestrian access between Butts Road and Croft Road via new footways. 

The report highlighted that the Council held a public consultation between 17th November and 15th December 2021 regarding the detail of the latest Air Quality proposals. 269 people completed the online questionnaire, 2,200 viewed the web page with 864 downloading associated documentation. 19 people emailed the air quality inbox to request further information or gave feedback and 39 people attended a drop-in session.

The Cabinet Member was informed that there was a mixture of views on the closure of the subways with some expressing concern at their closure, while others highlighted safety concerns with the subways and welcomed the closures.

The Air Quality programme was fully funded from the Air Quality Implementation Fund grant of £25.447 million already received by the City Council from Central Government. This grant was for the delivery of the Local Air Quality Action Plan as approved by the Council’s Cabinet on 21st July 2020, which included the provision of shared use facilities from Spon End to Croft Road.

The closure of the subway would be undertaken following the advertisement of the public notice and the expiry of the minimum 21 day notice period. The timetable for implementation of the Air Quality scheme was expected to take place between Spring 2022 and Winter 2023. The application to Magistrates’ Court would be made as soon as was practicable.

RESOLVED that:

1) The permanent closure and infilling of the subway be approved.

2) Approval be given for officers to commence the legal process to Stop Up the subway as identified in Appendix B to the report in accordance with the provisions of Sections 116 of the Highways Act 1980.

3) Approval be given for an application to be made to the Magistrates’ Court for an Order stopping up the highway as identified on plan in Appendix B to the report.

4) Authority be delegated to the Director of Highways and Transportation, following consultation with the Director of Law and Governance and the Chief Operating Officer (Section 151 Officer), to execute all necessary agreements and orders necessary to give effect to the recommendations set out in this report.