Agenda item

Concerns and suggestions raised at the meeting included the following:

·         It was suggested that the removal of grass verges in Cowley Crescent would increase the number of available parking spaces which would help to meet the increase in the demand for spaces created by residents in the road – many of the households had 2-3 cars each;

·         Petitioners disputed the claim that services might have to be moved as there were 27 crossovers in the road, none of which had needed the services moved beneath the surface;

·         It was noted that outside numbers 1 to 22, the pavement was half concrete and half grass.  It was thought that doing away with the grass and having hard standing would help address the issue of the overgrown hedges.  Petitioners asked if the Council was able to do something to get the hedges cut back as them being overgrown limited the available pavement space.  There were times when residents had to walk in the road as the pavement had become inaccessible and the road was a more stable surface to walk on than the grass verge and more able to accommodate a double pushchair;

·         The grass verges were often damaged by Council vehicles.  In addition, vehicles exiting a driveway in Cowley Crescent would have to drive over the grass if a car was parked opposite;

·         Three kerbstones had been re-laid badly outside of number 27 but there were no kerbstones outside of number 28.  The drains outside of number 24 had been worked on and the grass had been replaced with 30 metres of tarmac some years ago;

·         Petitioners requested that the footpath be resurfaced as dandelions were growing out of it and the surface was uneven;

·         Approximately 30 years ago, the Council had proposed to remove the grass verges and replace with hard standing but this idea had been rejected;

·         There was barely any grass on the outside circle; and

·         The lack of parking in the evenings was thought to predominantly be as a result of too many vehicles attributed to each of the households in the road.

Councillor Burrows, who was a Ward Councillor for this road, listened to the concerns of the petitioners and responded to the points raised.  He advised that, since he had been a Cabinet Member, he was unaware of the Council converting any grass verges to hard standing.  The retention of grass verges helped to increase surface water drainage and therefore prevented flooding. 

Consideration was given to the possibility of a parking management scheme that allowed residents only to park in the road up to 10pm.  Parking management schemes were being implemented in surrounding roads which could result in the displaced vehicles then parking in Cowley Crescent.  Other options included yellow lines down one side of the road to provide access and a parking management scheme with staggered bays to enable manoeuvrability. 

Councillor Burrows stressed the need for residents to complete and return the consultation document once it had been hand delivered to each household.  The consultation results would be discussed with the Ward Councillors and options identified.  It was noted that, if the responses provided the Cabinet Member with a mandate to progress, the scheme would be designed in consultation with the residents. 

It was noted that the Cowley Crescent pavement was on the list for resurfacing.  Consideration would be given to what action could be taken to get the hedges cut back so that they did not impede access to the pavement. 

RESOLVED:  Meeting with the petitioners, the Cabinet Member for Planning, Transportation and Recycling:

1.      discussed with petitioners their concerns relating parking on Cowley Crescent, Uxbridge;

2.      advised petitioners that the Council will not, as a general rule, create hard standing at the expense of long established grass verges;

3.      discussed with residents possible options to manage parking in Cowley Crescent; and

4.      instructed officers to consult with residents of Cowley Crescent on options to resolve the current parking issues.

Reasons for recommendations

To allow the Cabinet Member to discuss with petitioners their concerns and, if appropriate, add aspects of their request for further investigation.

Alternative options considered / risk management

These were discussed with petitioners.