Agenda and minutes

There were no declarations of interest.

It was confirmed that all items were in Part I and would be considered in public.

The Cabinet Member considered a petition from residents requesting traffic calming measures on Warwick Road, West Drayton.

The Lead Petitioner was present and made a number of points, including:

• With the coming of the Elizabeth line, there had been a significant increase in number of people living in and around West Drayton. As a result, Warwick Road had become a major highway for commuters.
• This issue was particularly prevalent during rush hour times in the morning and afternoon as people used the area as a drop-off and pick-up point.
• As referenced in paragraph 2 of the officer report, the petitioner informed the Cabinet Member of a recent incident involving their son where they were attempting to come out of their driveway, and was hit by a speeding car.
• In order to address these issues, the petitioner requested that the existing parking management scheme (PMS) be extended to include weekend operation.
• The petitioner also requested a 20mph speed limit implementation at Brandville Road and also suggested a ‘No Entry’ sign at the junction between Brandville Road and Warwick Road.

The Cabinet Member acknowledged points made by the Lead Petitioner. 

Councillor Jan Sweeting, Ward Councillor for West Drayton, reaffirmed her support for the petitioners stating:

• Warwick Road was indeed a concern, particularly in regard to the safety and wellbeing of the local residents as there had been a number of incidents acknowledged on this road.
• The Member elaborated on this reference to incidents, informing the Cabinet Member that these did not merely concern complications surrounding speeding, parking and congestion but also reported cases of anti-social behaviour and serious crime.
• Further to this, the Ward Councillor informed the Cabinet Member that their colleague, Councillor Stuart Mathers (at the time, a Ward Councillor for West Drayton prior to the local elections of May 2022) had been in talks with the previous leader of the Council in an attempt to increase CCTV surveillance in the area and the possibility that the funding for this could come from S106 contributions.
• Councillor Sweeting expressed doubts that the recommended 24/7 traffic and speed surveys would return positive data as one of the most prevalent dangers was in vehicles passing each other.
• The Ward Councillor echoed the Lead Petitioner’s request for the extension of the current PMS to also include weekends as well as the Lead Petitioner’s request for a 20mph speed limit initiative.
• The Member for West Drayton additionally remarked that the Elizabeth Line was currently not fully operational and once plans have been realised in the future, these issues mentioned were likely to be amplified, thereby adding urgency to action and preventative measures.

The Cabinet Member acknowledged the concerns of the Lead petitioner and Member for West Drayton and responded to these firstly by requesting further elaboration on the ‘No Entry’ sign at the end of Brandville Road put forward by the Lead Petitioner. The Lead Petitioner responded that this would ideally be to prevent vehicles from turning left at the end of Brandville Road, onto Warwick  ...  view the full minutes text for item 11.

The Cabinet Member considered a petition from residents requesting traffic calming measures on Howlett’s Lane, Ruislip.

The Lead Petitioner was present and made a number of points, including:

• The fact that the centre portion of Howlett’s Lane was a divided highway, as seen in Appendix A of the officer report, added complications.
• Another issue concerned speeding vehicles at the blind bend at the Breakspear Road end, past the Woodman pub and shops.
• Despite the presence of a 30mph VAS outside number 36, regular speeding had been reported along the divided part of the road, particularly during morning and afternoon rush hours, with some residents even going the wrong way down this divided road.
• The petitioners, through two 30 minute observation windows, detected 18 and 21 incidents of cars triggering the 30mph VAS respectively.
• Additionally, the community of elderly residents at St Catherine’s Court which had access to Howlett’s Lane added further concern to the speeding issue as these resident’s needed time to cross this road and special considerations from drivers.
• The police had been approached; the Lead Petitioner informed the hearing. In response, an Officer was sent, who carried out speed guns checks on motorists, but this was allegedly a one-off and not made into a frequent occurrence.
• It was also remarked that HS2 construction in close proximity to Breakspear Road may have contributed to an increased number of vehicles in this area.
• It was also mentioned that a 24/7 speed and vehicle classification survey was undertaken in 2021 which may negate the need to carry out a further survey.
• The Lead Petitioner concluded their speech by clarifying that they would be happy for Council officers to recommend the appropriate practical solutions that could effectively combat the issues mentioned.

The Cabinet Member acknowledged points made by the Lead Petitioner. 

Councillor John Riley, Ward Councillor for Ruislip reaffirmed his support for the petitioners stating:

• All three Ward Councillors for Ruislip were in support of the petition.
• This particular stretch of road was a concern as motorists were able to build up considerable speed coming from St Margaret’s Road and Marlborough Avenue, onto Howlett’s Lane, particularly before they got to the sharp bend that drops down towards Howlett’s Lane shops. This was a concern as this area gets very busy during morning and afternoon rush hours.
• The concerns over speeding in this area were made worse by the fact that this was not only a popular area for families and children, but also for a lot of walkers who were already constrained by the narrow pavement and also the proliferation of mobility scooter users.
• In terms of options moving forward, Councillor Riley acknowledged that speed surveys had already been conducted and that this available information could be valuable. He also declared that the VAS had been very effective in terms of slowing people down.

Councillor Phillip Corthorne, Ward Councillor for Ruislip also reaffirmed his support for the petitioners stating:

·         He supported the petition and was very much aware of the issues highlighted  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12.

The Cabinet Member considered a petition from residents regarding parking at St Anselm’s Road disabled car park. The lead petitioner made the following points:

• Residents were suffering from large amounts of noise, particularly loud music coming from the car park.
• Further to these reports of loud music, anti-social behaviour in this area was a major concern.
• There were many reports of cars obstructing residents’ driveways. There were also problems with parked vehicles obstructing access not only for residents, but also the emergency services, disability transport and elderly residents.
• The main aim for the Lead Petitioner and co-petitioners was to have what they referred to as ‘the temporary disabled parking scheme’ now in place to be reinstated to the former layout in order to address these aforementioned concerns.

Officers added that, unfortunately for the Lead Petitioner and those present at the hearing in support, the Ward Councillors and other affiliated community stakeholders were consulted and were broadly in support of the arrangements currently in place, as detailed in paragraph 16 of the officer report.

The Cabinet Member, after acknowledging the points made by the Lead Petitioner and officers, invited John McDonnell, the Right Honourable Member of Parliament for Hayes & Harlington to speak on this matter, who informed the hearing that:

• He had been in long-term correspondence with his constituents regarding this situation.
• Echoed the Lead Petitioner’s statement that cars had been parking illegally on other people’s driveways, and also obstructing access for emergency vehicles (which there was an incident of recently).
• The local residents were finding life extremely hard as a result of the changes to the scheme and therefore disputed the views of stakeholders provided in paragraph 16 of the officer report.
• Primary concern is the safety of the residents involved, particularly in regard to the reports of anti-social behaviour.
• Desired a somewhat holistic approach to resolving these issues and would like to see a Council-led discussion with various affiliated parties on how this can be achieved.

The Cabinet Member expressed their gratitude for the Member of Parliament for Hayes & Harlington’s remarks on the matter and invited two co-petitioners to have their say on the predicament, who:

·         in reference to the parking debate, echoed the concerns over emergency vehicle access and also disabled residents, noting problems when parking for use of nearby medical practises.

·         Mentioned that there had been serious abuse towards residents from those using the parking facilities.

·         Further to earlier discussions surrounding reports of concerning anti-social behaviour, the residents informed the Cabinet Member that these issues had been previously raised with the police.

The Cabinet Member expressed the view that the primary concerns being raised by petitioners and others in their testimonies appeared to be matters of anti-social behaviour, and so it may clearly be beneficial for these aspects to be considered in context of the parking arrangements, rather than the issues in isolation.

RESOLVED: That the Cabinet Member for Property, Highways and Transport:

1)    Met with petitioners and listened to their request for the Council to revert  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

The Cabinet Member considered a petition from residents requesting speed control measures on Mahlon Avenue, South Ruislip.

The Lead Petitioner was present and made a number of points, including:

• There were significant concerns over speeding along Mahlon Avenue, sometimes speeds of up to 40/50mph during mornings and evenings.
• There had been numerous incidents of vehicle damage as a result of this speeding; for example, wing mirrors being clipped.
• Serious concerns over children’s safety were raised as there are a lot of young families on the road.
• Lead Petitioner reported that the signatories reached consensus on a proposal for a 20mph speed limit being instituted in addition to speed bumps, similar to what had been done at nearby Edwards Avenue a short while ago.

The Cabinet Member acknowledged the points made by the Lead Petitioner and asked for clarification on whether this was mainly a one-way issue because of motorists attempting to avoid the nearby traffic lights. It was confirmed that the primary issue was speeding from those vehicles turning right onto Mahlon Avenue from Edwards Avenue and heading towards Station Approach. The Lead Petitioner specified that; as soon as motorists escaped Edwards Avenue, which had speed calming measures, and turned onto Mahlon Avenue, they see it as a clear road and an opportunity to get away with speeding. It was also clarified that a barrier existed at the junction of Mahlon Avenue and Edwards Avenue forcing drivers to turn right onto Mahlon Avenue.

The Cabinet Member acknowledged points made by the Lead Petitioner. 

Councillor Steve Tuckwell, Ward Councillor for South Ruislip reaffirmed his support for the petitioners stating:

• He suspected the main reason for these speeding issues came from motorists trying to beat morning and afternoon rush hour traffic. The Ward Councillor for South Ruislip had witnessed this situation first-hand and elaborated that motorists were attempting to go in a horseshoe, in an attempt to beat the traffic frustrations on Station Approach. The Ward Councillor hypothesised that this could be a consequence of old satellite navigation systems not including the barrier and therefore seeing Mahlon Avenue as a potential shortcut onto West End Road.
• The South Ruislip Resident’s Association had also expressed concern about the subject matter of the petition.
• The concerns expressed by the Lead Petitioner were amplified by the narrow road and extensive parking on both sides. Furthermore, the nearby school and consistent pedestrian traffic also increased the potential risks.
• Echoed the Lead Petitioner’s desire for resolution and suggested that one potential option for the Cabinet Member to investigate might be to implement a ‘No Left Turn’ onto Edward’s Avenue from Great Central Avenue for a 2-hour time period during the mornings.

The Cabinet Member acknowledged points made by the Ward Councillor for South Ruislip and briefly outlined his decision on the matter. In regard to the Cabinet Member’s proposal for speed survey’s, the Officer invited the Ward Councillor for South Ruislip and the Lead Petitioner to cooperate on the most appropriate location of these.

RESOLVED: That the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.

The Cabinet Member considered a petition from residents requesting speeding measures on Hercies Road and Honeycroft Hill.

A co-petitioner was present and made a number of points on behalf of the petitioners, including:

• Hercies Road was long and straight and led to the A40 and was used as a ‘rat run’.
• Some motorists were alleged to have been achieving perceived speeds of more than 70mph during the night, bringing serious danger but also loud noise for sleeping residents as well.
• The petitioner argued that they and other petitioners present had witnessed multiple accidents on the road in question as a result of speeding. The Cabinet Member was informed that a paper was sent out in April this year to the residents which detailed three accidents in the locality.
• These accidents were evidenced in the original petition submission, as provided in paragraph 2 of the officer report.
• Further to this, the petitioner added that there was also a follow up email in August where the residents were made aware of another accident in the vicinity; on this occasion a car crashing into a telegraph pole by Sweetcroft Lane.
• This speeding was made worse by the fact that this road was close to the walkway alongside the River Pinn and also the high pedestrian presence in the area as a consequence of it being a bus route and also having a nearby nursery.
• Residents were requesting that speed bumps be installed however they were minded to allow the method of traffic calming to be decided by the Council.

Councillor Farhad Choubedar, Ward Councillor for Uxbridge informed the Cabinet Member of his support for the petitioners.

The Cabinet Member, after acknowledging the points made by the Lead Petitioner and the Ward Councillor for Uxbridge, made the following comments:

• He noted the cautious approach the Council must take in order to avoid merely moving the issue present in one road to another nearby road.
• He expressed doubt in the effectiveness of speed tables or humps to combat this speeding as it could provide significant problems for the existing bus route as well as complications regarding the placement of speed humps outside residents’ properties.
• Noted that discussion with the police on this would be necessary, particularly when data had been acquired from the proposed speed surveys.
• Asked the Officer for timings on speed surveys and also for advice from petitioners on the most suitable location to administer these.

The Officer informed the Cabinet Member that the proposed speed surveys were generally carried out during school term time rather than the quieter holiday periods; it was hoped that they could be included within a batch prior to Christmas this year. Further to this, it was declared that the data from these surveys would be particularly useful considering that speed surveys had not been carried out in this locality for a relatively substantial period of time. The Officer also seconded the Cabinet Member’s assertation regarding the police and reiterated that the police, in contrast to the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 15.