Agenda and minutes

RESOLVED:  That all items be considered in public. 

Councillors George Cooper and Ray Graham attended the meeting and spoke as Ward Councillors in support of the petition. 

Concerns and suggestions raised at the meeting included the following:

·         The petition organiser tabled a document illustrating the road safety issues caused by traffic from Park Road using the adjacent roads as a rat run and advised that this sometimes extended from 4pm to 7pm.  This had resulted in vehicles racing and cutting the corner at the duck pond;

·         It was suggested that emergency vehicles were hampered by the current situation and pollution was increasingly becoming an issue due to cars being stuck in traffic;

·         The speed and volume of vehicles was becoming increasingly hazardous for pedestrians, especially in low light, as there were no pavements in North Common Road;

·         As the local schools held after school clubs and revision sessions, the students were leaving school around rush hour and would be using North Common Road at this time;

·         There had been numerous accounts of near misses where vehicles had overtaken on the bend and been on the wrong side of the carriageway when there had been oncoming traffic;

·         If a vehicle broke down on Park Road this caused chaos with more traffic using North Common Road as a cut through to avoid the tailbacks;

·         Petitioners requested that the Council implement measures such as access controls, speed restrictions or a portable speed camera.  Any solution implemented should also address the vehicles speeding round the corner by the duck pond which might require a redesign;

·         North Common Road had never been intended to carry large volumes of traffic so was quite narrow.  It was recognised that the pinch points were controlled by the Department of Transport;

·         As the volume of traffic on Park Road was increasing, it was natural for drivers to seek a shortcut.  It was suggested that vehicles being prohibited from exiting from North Common Road onto Park Road would resolve the problem of rat running;

·         The traffic in this area had become a major problem and it was suggested that a creative solution to provide radical change was needed to alleviate the impact on residents; and

·         Although it had been suggested that drivers at the junctions of North Common Road and South Common Road be prohibited from turning left onto Park Road at peak times; it was recognised that a similar arrangement in Northwood was being largely ignored by drivers.  As an alternative, it was suggested that South Common Road be made one way so that there was no access from Park Road.  However, it was recognised that this would be a little inconvenient for residents.  

Councillor Burrows listened to the concerns of the petitioners and responded to the points raised.  Although there had been no information included in the report, Councillor Burrows asked officers to check to see if there had been

The petitioners were invited to indicate on a plan the location of traffic speed and volume surveys which would be undertaken as part of further  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2.

Although not present at the meeting, Councillor John Hensley had provided a written statement in support of the petition which was read out by Councillor Keith Burrows. 

Concerns and suggestions raised at the meeting included the following:

·         Because of the parking, Hoylake Crescent was effectively a single track road with a minimal number of passing places, hampering access for emergency vehicles, delivery drivers and waste collection vehicles;

·         Residents in the road found that other drivers parked their vehicles so close to their driveways that they had to ease out very slowly to avoid a collision.  Furthermore, it could sometimes take up to ten minutes to pass through the road and even longer to exit it when the road was gridlocked;

·         Pupils from Breakspear School crossed Hoylake Crescent and petitioners were concerned that it was only a matter of time before they would be involved in an accident as some motorists used excessive speed;

·         There had been numerous traffic accidents outside the petition organiser's house and petitioners felt that there was no energy from the Council to apply a solution;

·         Petitioners were keen to get the situation addressed immediately;

·         The lobbying exercise undertaken in 2014 had included the whole of Hoylake Crescent but only 25% of the residents were affected.  As such, residents requested that any future consultation only be directed at the residents that would be affected or for consultation to be undertaken with the affected and unaffected residents separately; and

·         The issues for Hoylake Crescent residents had arisen following the introduction of the parking management scheme (PMS) in Rectory Way.  However, the Copthall Road East PMS had improved the situation as traffic there was able to flow more freely.

Councillor Burrows listened to the concerns of the petitioners and responded to the points raised.  He advised that the Council consulted whole roads else any decision could be challenged by the section that had not been consulted.  However, he acknowledged that the petitioners wanted the Council to specifically look at the results of the affected stretch of Hoylake Crescent. 

The petitioners were advised that there were a huge number of PMSs in the Borough and each one had to be managed, consulted on and reviewed once in place.  Based on the concerns raised by the petitioners, Councillor Burrows asked officers to request that the emergency services drive down the road during peak times to establish whether access was sufficient. 

Hoylake Crescent would be included in the review being undertaken of the existing PMS and officers would consult with all households in the road.  The results would be shared with the Cabinet Member and Ward Councillors and consideration could then be given to the point in Hoylake Crescent at which a PMS could start/stop. 

It was noted that, once proposals that been drawn up and consulted on, a statutory consultation need to be undertaken.  This process could take six months as there might be objections which needed to be properly considered. 

RESOLVED:  Meeting with the petitioners, the Cabinet Member:

1.            listened  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

Councillor Kanwal Dheer attended the meeting and spoke as a Ward Councillor in support of the petition. 

Concerns and suggestions raised at the meeting included the following:

·         The road had been resurfaced in 2016 but the pavements had not been included and were bumpy and dangerous;

·         Concern was expressed that the pavement posed a health and safety hazard;

·         A request was made that consideration be given to installing dropped kerbs to provide access for the disabled and for those with pushchairs; and

·         The condition of the pavements had deteriorated following the bad weather.

Councillor Burrows listened to the concerns expressed and responded to the points raised.  Given that there appeared to be accessibility issues, the Cabinet Member requested that the Council's Accessibility Officer inspect the pavements and report their findings back to him.  Councillor Dheer would be advised when this inspection would take place, but it was likely to be in the spring.  It was acknowledged that there was a budget which could possibly be used in this instance to help improve accessibility for disabled people. 

RESOLVED:  That the Cabinet Member:

1.    notes that the carriageway resurfacing was completed in May 2016;

2.    considers the petitioners’ request and discusses with them in detail their concerns regarding the condition of the footway surface;

3.    instruct officers to place Masefield Lane, Hayes on to the list being considered for planned footway maintenance in a future programme; and

4.    requested that the Council's Accessibility Officer visits the area and reports back to the Cabinet Member their findings regarding accessibility for disabled users and those with pushchairs.

Reasons for recommendation

The existing surface of the footway has started to show signs of deterioration to the extent that shallow cracking has taken place in isolated areas of the surface layer. The isolated failure is due to aggregate fretting of the material. The surface profile is uneven in places and the bitumen surface is scarred due to utility trenches at a number of locations.  Reconstruction of the footways would enhance the visual appearance of the street and provide a safe environment for residents and road users; however, based on the existing condition, reconstruction would not be the most economical option.

Alternative options considered / risk management

Further isolated maintenance works would restore the condition of footways, and enhance the visual appearance.

Councillors Wayne Bridges and Pat Jackson attended the meeting and spoke as Ward Councillors in support of the petition. 

Concerns and suggestions raised at the meeting included the following:

·         Regent Avenue had suffered flooding for two consecutive years with 2016 being only slightly worse than the previous year.  Although the last serious flooding reported to Thames Water (TW) prior to this had been 25-30 years ago, there had been instances since then that just had not been reported.  When TW had been contacted, the complaint process had been so onerous that only three residents had completed and returned their complaint forms;

·         In 2016, there had been 12-18 inches of water and water had bubbled up from the drains.  The properties in Regent Avenue backed onto a green space which drained into their gardens, submerging them or, at one property, flooding inside the house.  In addition, the sewers in the gardens of some properties had also overflowed.  Properties in Windsor Avenue and elsewhere on the Oak Farm Estate had also been affected; 

·         A lot of surface water ran into Regent Avenue and it was suggested that the flooding in the road had been caused by a combination of an inadequate sewer system and excess surface water; and

·         A new drainage system had been installed in Elephant Park but flooding was becoming more prevalent.

Councillor Burrows listened to the concerns of the petitioners and responded to the points raised.  He noted that there had been 223 reports of flooding in Hillingdon on 23 June 2016 and that this situation had been replicated across London.  A lot of the drainage system was still of Victorian origin and the replacement programme was just getting underway.  The Council would continue to maintain the gullies in the road and residents were asked to report any gullies that needed clearing. 

It was noted that climate change had impacted on flooding and Councillor Burrows sympathised with those affected.  He asked that officers write to TW on his behalf (copying in the local MP) enclosing evidence that had been gathered by the Council and by residents and requesting that TW look into this issue in Regent Avenue.  TW would be advised that, although 2016 might be perceived to have been 'exceptional circumstances', significant flooding had also occurred in 2015.  Ward Councillors would be sent the response received from TW. 

The petitioners were asked to forward copies of any evidence that they had in relation to this issue to Council officers.  In addition, officers would ensure that information was available on the Council website in relation to action that could be taken by residents to protect their properties.  This information could also be distributed to residents by the Ward Councillors. 

RESOLVED:  Meeting with the petitioners, the Cabinet Member:

1.    noted and listened to the residents who had suffered a flooding incident on the 23 June 2016 and sympathised with their concerns regarding flooding; 

2.    noted that, on 23 June 2016, a ‘Flood Guidance Statement - AMBER: Surface Water, YELLOW:  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.