Agenda and minutes

It was confirmed that the business of the meeting would take place in public.

Reports were considered as set out below:

Concerns and suggestions raised at the meeting included the following:

• The road surfaces of Larne Road and West Hatch Manor were in very poor condition
• Concerns were raised about the uneven level of paving and the gaps in the paving stones and the detrimental effects on residents, particularly on the elderly and children
•  Suggested that Larne Road was heavily used at various times of the day by children
• Double parking at the Windmill Hill end of West Hatch Manor was an hindrance to emergency vehicles and lorries
• The edge and guttering in some parts of the roads ranged from being in good to very poor conditions, with the growth of weeds and grass in some parts

The Cabinet Member commented that:

• The issue of potholes in roads in the UK was a huge problem for many local authorities
• The Administration recognised that this winter had been the worst in thirty years
• After the bad weather, inspection of the roads in Hillingdon were carried out to ascertain repairs that would be required before the next winter
•  Following the inspection, officers reported that it was estimated that it would cost £2.4 million to repair the roads
• The original highways budget of £750,000 therefore fell short of this amount required
• The release of £2.4 million pound had therefore been agreed, with £1.1 million being released in March 2010 and the remaining £1.3 million being rolled over from the beginning April 2010 onwards
• That Larne Road and West Hatch Manor would be placed on the Council’s list for structural resurfacing

The Cabinet Member requested officers to investigate and submit a report should any issue of safety be found, as a result of vehicles double parking at the Windmill Hill end of West Hatch Manor.

Resolved - That the Cabinet Member for Planning & Transportation noted the views of the petitioners and asked officers to:

1. Place Larne Road and West Hatch Manor on the list for structural resurfacing.

2. Place Larne Road footway on a future resurfacing programme.

3. Continue to monitor West Hatch Manor footway and ensure any responsive maintenance works to damaged kerbs, defectivebituminous areas or concrete paving slabs are implemented as necessary.

1. Carry out a review of the thermoplastic road lines, particularly at the junctions with West Hatch Manor and implement re-lining where appropriate. 

Reasons for recommendation

Officers consider that a substantial part of the West Hatch Manor carriageway has suffered loss of structural integrity in the uppermost layers.  There is also suggestion that Larne Road may be in the early stages of a loss of structural integrity. This is reinforced by the results of the UK Pavement Management System (UKPMS), which provides an average Coarse Visual Inspection (CVI) result of 110.95 for Larne Road and 114.02 for West Hatch Manor, where 75 is the point at which action is recommended.

Both the existing West Hatch Manor and Larne Road carriageways have suffered significantly within a relatively short period of time and there is evidence of crazing and rutting in significant areas with shallow  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

Concerns and suggestions raised at the meeting included the following:

• The detrimental effects the surface deterioration of the road had on the many elderly as well as disabled people living in the area
• The roads had been patched many times over the years
•  Severe weather conditions this winter had made the road even worse, with increased potholes
• Parking in Hoylake Gardens was also a problem particularly between 12pm and 4pm.

Councillor Michael White attended the meeting and spoke as Ward Councillor in support of the petitioner and commented that:

• Support had been given to  the petitioner’s concerns about the condition of the road four years ago at a hearing with the Cabinet Member
• The resurfacing of Hoylake Gardens had been long waited
•  The Cabinet Member was strongly urged to approve the resurfacing of the road

Having listened to the petitioner’s and Ward Councillor’s concerns, the Cabinet Member responded that:

• After the bad weather, inspection of the roads in Hillingdon were carried out to ascertain repairs that would be required before the next winter
•  Following the inspection, officers reported that it was estimated that it would cost £2.4 million to repair the roads
• The original highways budget of £750,000 therefore fell short of this amount required
• The release of £2.4 million pound had been agreed, with £1.1 million being released  in March 2010 and the remaining £1.3 million being rolled over from the beginning April 2010 onwards
• That Hoylake Gardens would be placed on the Council’s list for structural resurfacing.

Officers advise that when it is known when the works would be carried out, residents would be notified of alternative measures being put in place to prevent parking on the carriage way.

Resolved 

That the Cabinet Member for Planning and Transportation notes the petition and:

1.         That the carriageway in Hoylake Gardens be assessed and prioritised for inclusion in the 2010/2011 resurfacing programme.

Reasons for recommendation

The carriageway of Hoylake Gardens can effectively be split into two sections. 

The first section from Southbourne Gardens to the boundary of no 11 is older than the remaining section.  It is a late 1930’s concrete road, which was overlaid with a thin layer of ‘tarmac’ material 30- 40 years ago.  The surface material has since deteriorated to the extent that numerous potholes have appeared. This is evident by the extensive number of irregular sized patches along this first section, which makes it difficult to differentiate between patching and surface. 

Extensive trenching has also been carried out, to provide service utilities to the later second section, which serves a small housing development built approximately 20 years ago. Some of these trenches now have joint cracks resulting in surface irregularities and necessary repairs.

Each year, in addition to safety inspections, all of the Borough’s carriageways are surveyed and assessed for structural condition in accordance with the rules and parameters of the United Kingdom Pavement Management System (UKPMS), the results of which provide the performance indicators and prioritized listings for structural condition.

The Council also carries  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.

Concerns and suggestions raised at the meeting included the following:

• Pot holes in the road had been continually filed and never been completely resurfaced
• Shattered pavements and kerb had had never been replaced
• There were roots and trees showing through the cracks in the road and pavements
• The road was regularly used by children and parents to access the schools nearby
• There had been a number of accidents with people falling off their bikes and children regularly falling over
• There had also been a major accident as a result of drivers trying to swerve the pot holes in the road
• The condition of the pavements was detrimental to people pushing prams
• Although it was acknowledged about four or five years ago that the road was bad, nothing could be done at that time
• A number of slabs had been replaced but there were still a large proportion of broken pavement slab in need of replacement
• Repair work done on the road did not last long, due to the large number of pot holes
• The drains did not appear to be able to cope with running water from the road
• Parking had become a major problem, particularly as parents dropped and collected their children to and from school.

Councillor Michael White attended the meeting and spoke as Ward Councillor in support of the petitioners, and made the following comments:

• Concerned about the safety of the pavements, particularly for the elderly  and children
• The road was in a poor state and would need major resurfacing
• Some areas of the kerb appeared to be disintegrating and therefore would need to be properly resurfaced
• Asked petitioners to note that a programme of tree replanting in the road had been earmarked in the Ward budget.

Having listened to the issues and concerns raised by the petitioners and Ward Councillor, the Cabinet Member responded that:

• After the bad weather, inspection of the roads in Hillingdon were carried out to ascertain repairs that would be required before the next winter
•  Following the inspection, officers reported that it was estimated that it would cost £2.4 million to repair the roads
• The original highways budget of £750,000 therefore fell short of this amount required
• The release of £2.4 million pound had been agreed with £1.1 million being released in March 2010 and the remaining £1.3 million being rolled over from the beginning April 2010 onwards
• He was aware of the issue of the condition of the road and that Mount Pleasant was included as part of the Council’s programme for road works in the 2010/11 financial year
• Resurfacing of Mount Pleasant should be completed by the end of summer in 2010

It was noted that school holidays would be taken into account when works were being carried out.

Resolved

 That the Cabinet Member for Planning and Transportation:

1.                  Noted that officers had carried out a detailed assessment and that they recommend that the carriageway surfaces in Mount Pleasant receive treatment during a future programme.

2.                  Noted that in response  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

Concerns and suggestions raised at the meeting included the following:

• Petitioners were concerned about the poor street lighting in Cranborne Waye and  Dorchester Waye
• The poor lighting of the streets in the evenings was detrimental to the safety and general well being of residents and their feeling of sense of security
•  Antisocial behaviour and residents feeling intimidated by groups of people congregating and drinking in the poorly lit areas
• Many residents did not feel safe to go out at night, and a petitioner advised that they had been a victims of harassment
• Ten incidents of crime and disorder had been reported in the area in the last four months
•  The Safer neighbourhood Team agreed with the petitioners that improved lighting would help to reduce crime and the fear of crime
• Suggested that the currently overgrown hedges should be cut and regularly maintained, as residents did not feel safe walking past them

Councillors John Major and Lindsay Bliss attended the meeting and spoke as Ward Councillors in support of the petitioners. They supported the recommendations in the officer’s report and urged the Cabinet Member to agree them.

After listening to the petitioners’ concerns and comments from the Ward Councillors, the Cabinet Member advised that he fully supported the officer’s recommendations. The Cabinet Member asked the petitioners to note that there may be some delay in the wiring of the standards, as wiring could only be undertaken by Sothern Electricity.

Resolved

That the Cabinet Member for Planning & Transportation:

1.      Noted the petition and listened to the concerns of the petitioners.

2.      Agreed to the allocation of £19,000 of the 2009/10 Street Lighting Capital Programme to fund the improvement of the street lighting to the full length of both roads.

Reasons for recommendation

The existing street lighting does not comply with the recommendations of the current British Standard.

The Police Safer Neighbourhoods Team has also requested that the street lighting be improved to reduce crime and the fear of crime.

This will provide street lighting to the current British Standard recommendations for the whole length of both roads. 

Alternative options considered

Officers consider that only improving the lighting at the junctions would Wimbourne Avenue will cause an exaggeration of the poor levels of lighting in the remaining roads.

Upgrading the existing lanterns would lead to very patchy lighting. The areas around the existing columns would be brighter but the sharp cut-off of modern lanterns will make the dark patches between the columns darker.

Ward

Barnhill

The following concerns and suggestions were noted at the meeting:

• That contact details for notifying the Yiewsley Community Involvement Group had been sorted
• Suggested that four planning applications for high rise buildings had been submitted to the Planning Department
• Acknowledged that the Council had been turning down inappropriate planning applications, which was welcomed
•  Pointed out that the issue of approving planning applications with high rise buildings was now a historical matter, as the petitioner was satisfied that this was no longer the case.

Councillors Mike Bull and Peter Kemp attended the meeting and spoke as Ward Councillors for West Drayton and Yiewsley in support of the petitioners. They commented that there were no issues pertaining to planning applications for high rise buildings, except that some applications were out of keeping with the areas.

The Cabinet Member for Planning and Transportation listened to the petitioners concerns and comments from the Ward Councillors. He added that:

• Hillingdon Council undertook more public consultation than other

Councils and endeavoured to be as transparent as possible in its decision making process.

Resolved

That the Cabinet Member for Planning and Transportation:

1.         Met and discussed with petitioners their concerns regarding ‘high rise buildings’ and public consultation on planning matters.

2.         Advise the petitioner, given the evidence presented in the petition report, it was not the case that the Council was allowing lots of high rise buildings in Yiewsley, West Drayton or Cowley.

3.         Advised the petitioner, given the evidence presented in the petition report, that the Council already undertook extensive public consultation on planning matters in excess of statutory requirements.

Reasons for recommendation

The report looks at planning submissions for buildings over 3 storeys in the last 3-4 years, with specific regard to Yiewsley, but also West Drayton and Cowley. It notes that most developments for buildings above 3 storeys have been refused planning permission.

The report explains that the Council exceeds statutory requirements for public consultation.

Alternative options considered

The chief petitioner does not advocate any solutions to the issues raised; rather she requests the opportunity to voice the concerns of the local community. This opportunity is given through the Cabinet petition process.

Wards

Yiewsley and West Drayton