Agenda and minutes

To elect a Chairman for the meeting.

Cllr McMahon having been proposed and seconded, and there being no other nominations, the Committee

Resolved

That Cllr McMahon be elected Chairman for the meeting.

To elect a Vice-chairman for the meeting.

The Committee decided that on this occasion there was no need for a Vice-Chairman to be elected.

To approve as a correct record the minutes of the meeting held on 15 January 2015.

Resolved

That the minutes of the meeting held on 15 January 2015 be approved as a correct record.

At this juncture (10.10am) the meeting was adjourned to allow Members to receive legal advice on the scope of the Committee’s powers and duties.  The meeting was re-convened at 10.23am.

To answer any written public questions about matters which are within the powers and duties of the Committee.

The closing date/time for the receipt of questions is 10.00am on 2 December 2015.

To answer any oral question(s) put by members of the public with the consent of the Chairperson, where notice of such has been given to the Chief Executive (or their representative) by 9.30am on 8 December 2015. .

Depending on the nature of the questions asked it may not be possible to provide a comprehensive answer at the meeting, in which case a written answer will be supplied as soon as reasonably possible after the meeting.

No written or oral questions were received from members of the public.

To answer any written members questions. The closing date/time for receipt of questions is 10.00am on 2 December 2015.

No written questions were received from Members of the Council.

To consider representations made during the Traffic Regulation Order Consultation process regarding the proposal to vary the Gloucestershire County Council Traffic Order 201X in respect of 40 mph Speed Limit (B4008 Hardwicke, Quedgeley And Gloucester City).

To make recommendations to the Commissioning Director: Communities & Infrastructure on the way forward.

Please note that this report contains exempt information (which is printed on pink paper) and non-exempt information. If the Committee wish to discuss exempt information, consideration should first be given to whether the public should be excluded from the meeting by passing the following resolution:

That in accordance with Section 100 A (4) of the Local Government Act 1972 the public be excluded from the meeting for the business specified in item no. 7 because it is likely that if members of the public were present there would be disclosure to them of exempt information as defined in paragraphs 1 and 2 of Part 1 of Schedule 12 A to the Act and the public interest in withholding the information outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information to the public.

The Committee received a short presentation on the proposed Traffic Order fromAlan Bullock, Senior Engineer - Improvements and Dan Tiffney, Local Highways Manager.

The Order proposed to reduce the length of the B4008 covered by the 40 mph speed limit so that an extension to the length of this road covered by the 30 mph limit could be accommodated.

The presentation covered the details of the road affected, historical issues, the effect on traffic flows which could result from potential residential development in the area, and the justification for the proposed changes to the current traffic management scheme.  Particular emphasis was placed on the reasons why the changes to the speed limit were proposed to end at the junction of Green Lane with the B4008 which related to the good practice of allowing for a gradual reduction in speed from a road with a high speed limit to one with a lower speed limit.

Officers also explained that the proposed Order would be reviewed on a regular basis in the light of continuing residential development taking place in the area and the consequential effects on traffic flows this would have.

The following points were highlighted in response to questions from the Committee:

·         No accidents had been officially recorded on the southern section of road (from the Green Lane junction to the A38 junction)

·         It had not been possible to provide traffic calming such as pedestrian crossings or refuge islands in the southern section of the B4008 as this area did not meet the priority criteria for this type of installation.  The criteria had been set to ensure best use of a limited budget.

·         The S106 monies due from the Hunts Grove development were not expected to be available for at least three years, and may be closer to five years.

The following people addressed the Committee (speeches summarised) and responded to questions from Members as indicated:

David Collicott – Gloucestershire Constabulary

Mr Collicott explained that his professional advice would be for the Traffic Order to be implemented as published.  Although acknowledging the concerns of local residents over the perceived speed of vehicles along the B4008 from the access off the by-pass to the junction with Green Lane, he could not support the proposal that the 30 mph speed limit be extended to this area as well since this would then require drivers to make unnecessarily harsh reductions in speed.

He confirmed that the area was subject to regular reviews because of the continuing residential development and that it was quite likely that at sometime in the near future, further adjustments to the road network would facility a reduction in the speed limits on both this section of the B4008 and the by-pass.

Cllr Mossman – Stroud District and Hardwicke Parish Councillor

Cllr Mossman informed the Committee that local residents had sought a reduction in the speed limits in this area for many years.  Although welcoming the proposed extension of the 30 mph zone, he urged the Committee to support  ...  view the full minutes text for item 46.