Agenda item

The Cabinet Member considered a petition from residents requesting traffic calming measures and increased street cleansing. A representative from the petition was in attendance and made the following points: 

·         Concerns were raised about the safety of pedestrians and residents given the excessive speeding on Freemans Lane. It was requested that the speed limit on the road be reduced from 30 mph to 20 mph.

·         There were serious concerns raised for children and adults who visited the park when crossing roads as there was no zebra crossing and drivers regularly sped.

·         The entrances to the park were narrow and it was enquired whether the number of entrances could be reduced.

·         There was a constant screeching of cars due to excessive speeding and many residents could not have their windows open due to the noise.

·         There had been many near incidents due to speed of vehicle travel and concerns were raised about emergency vehicles being able to access the road.

·         There had been incidents where people had removed the bollards to allow large vehicles to travel through the road. The bollards were also damaged, unlocked and widened no longer serving their purpose.

·         Double yellow lines were requested at turning points.

·         There was concern at the perceived lack of formal pedestrian crossing points, especially near some of the entrances into Barra Hall Park.

·         Concerns were also raised about the level of cleaning on the road. Although cleaning took place weekly there was still an excessive amount of litter especially near the park.

Councillor Lynne Allen attended the meeting and spoke as Ward Councillor in support of the petition. Councillor Allen supported the points raised by the petitioner and added that the level of speeding was a concern for all adults and children. The Council was urged to implement a 20-mph speed limit to avoid any fatalities. It was also asked that  yellow lines be added at the turning points and for the shrubbery at Barra Hall Park to be cut more frequently. Cllr Allen added that she felt that the streetlighting in sections of Freeman’s Lane was, in her view, inadequate.

The Head of Transport and Town Centre Projects considered that it would be sensible to assess the complete layout of Freemans Lane to see how the road as a whole could be improved. Options such as lorry bans and the need or otherwise for retention of the existing width restriction could be considered. 

Councillor Riley listened to the concerns of the petitioners and responded to the points raised. Councillor Riley accepted that speeding was considered by the petitioners and Cllr Allen to be an issue in the area and noted this from the petition and statements submitted.  It was clearly a busy road that was amongst other purposes used by many residents to access the park.

Councillor Riley advised that independent traffic surveys would be commissioned through a specialist company in the normal manner, and to assist this process, the lead petitioner and Cllr Allen examined a plan of Freeman’s Lane and marked four locations for such surveys to take place. He explained that that the request would be added to the Council’s Road Safety Programme. The results from the surveys would be shared with Ward Councillors. The present financial constraints involved with funding from TFL were noted, although the Council will continue to seek alternative funding in anticipation of a possible government settlement with TfL. 

In considering the matters, Councillor Riley made the following decisions. 

RESOLVED:

Meeting with the Petitioners, the Cabinet Member for Public Safety and Transport:

1)    met with petitioners and listened to their concerns in regard to speeding and street cleansing on Freeman’s Lane, Hayes;

2)    asked officers to undertake 24/7 automated traffic counts at locations along Freeman’s Lane agreed with petitioners, and to report back to the Cabinet Member on the outcome;

3)    asked officers to liaise with the Highways team to investigate the current width restriction on Freeman’s Lane, Hayes, and to explore potential options to improve or replace it with alternative traffic calming; 

4)    asked officers within the Street Cleansing team to investigate issues raised by the petitioners and report back to the relevant Cabinet Member, the Cabinet Member for Environment, Housing and Regeneration;

5)    asked officers in the street lighting team to look at the state of lighting on Freemans Lane; and

6)    asked officers to explore double yellow lines where the turning points were, as suggested by the petitioners.

Reasons for decisions

The petition hearing provided a valuable opportunity to hear directly from the petitioners on their concerns and suggestions.

Alternative options considered / risk management

None at this stage.