Agenda item

Requests to speak at the Committee on a matter within its terms of reference must be made in writing to the clerk named on the front of this agenda by 5pm two working days before the meeting.

The Chair informed members that seven deputations had been received and accepted, copies of the deputation statements were included in the supplementary agenda. In addition, Councillor Lorna Russell had requested to speak on the Dartmouth Park Area Petition item.

• 4 deputations related to item 7 – Response to Petition to extend the Dartmouth Park Area Healthy Neighbourhood Consultation Deadline and these would be taken at the start of that item.

• 2 deputations related to item 8 – Camden Transport Strategy Delivery Plan 2025 -2028 and Local Implementation Plan and would be taken at the start of that item.

• The final deputation was from a group of Fleet Road residents with regards to Council plans and traffic orders on Fleet Road NW3 pertaining to the South End Green Streatery – This item would be taken after consideration of item 5 and the minutes item 6.

Consideration was given to the deputation statement referred to above.

The following response was given by the deputee to members questions:

• The new planned proposals were that the number 24 bus would stop and wait on Fleet Road rather than use the bus terminus. It did not matter how much pressure was put on TfL the buses had to wait somewhere.

Anthony Christofi Transport and Design Manager, Sam Margolis (Head of Transport Strategy and Projects) and Richard Bradbury, (Director of Environment and Sustainability) made the following comments in response to the deputations and members questions:

• The Southend Green and Heathy Street Scheme aimed to create healthier, safer and more accessible streets and a new public space with greening and seating for community use that would contribute to the south end green village character and identity as a neighbourhood centre.
• Having learnt lessons from previous trials and due to a long standing ask from local people to close a slip road, proposals were developed for the area which were consulted on over a period of 4 weeks in September and October 2022.
• The consultation involved setting up consultation pages on Camden’s We are Camden Citizens Space seeking people’s views, 2,700 postcards were sent to residents, businesses and local stakeholder groups in the vicinity of the proposed scheme asking for their feedback.
• During the consultation 69% of respondents supported the proposals.
• Following the consultation time was taken to consider the feedback and meet with stakeholders including TfL to understand concerns and to find ways to mitigate issues highlighted.
• A period of detailed design was required as well as ground surveys to provide the information required to revise the scheme, including information from TfL on a new electric bus platform that would struggle to make turns required for both bus services that used the Crescent area, something which neither parties were aware of during the early development of the scheme.
• Following consultation and refinement of the proposals a decision was taken in August 2024 to move ahead with the scheme, with some elements made permanent and the re-routing and standing of buses as an 18-month trial.
• The trial represented a further consultation stage where the Council would collect data and feedback from residents and businesses.
• Residents wee written to in August 2024 to inform them of the current status of the scheme and the changes that were being made to the trial scheme in line with the Council’s established processes.
• Residents would be written to ahead of the scheme’s delivery, setting out how they could respond and provide their views to the 18-month trial period.
• Council officers had responded to a number of enquiries from residents and were happy to continue to do so.
• The deputation referred to a 5-day period for comments, which officers believed was Camden’s usual decision-making process. The notification period ahead of a decision. This was not a consultation period or a period for comments but rather a period after a decision where the public could review the decision documents.
• With regards to the Freedom of Information concerns and discussions with TfL and content of the FOI email in July 2024 to Camden, the organisation fed back some comments. Camden and TfL had continuous discourse during all transport schemes and since those emails and consultation, TfL and the Council had met to develop the bus tracking and stand arrangements further with discussions still ongoing.
• The chronology and detail might be unclear from the emails alone, however officers wanted to reassure residents that feedback and concerns raised by TfL had been listened to as well as reviewing the feasibility of the changes. In particular concerns raised by TfL about electric bus tracking and other matters on 8^th July had been responded to by the Council.
• With regards to the experimental traffic order question that would be part of the 18-month consultation, it was experimental and could be removed.
• Money to remove the trial was secured within the scheme budget should it be required.
• It was acknowledged that Gospel Oak ward Councillors did not state that they supported the scheme, this was an error in the report for which officers apologised. An addendum would be added to the decision-making report to clarify this also informing the Committee that no blue badges would be removed in the scheme.
• Parking bays were removed in the scheme, if during the trial it was established that there was a need for more blue badge parking the experimental traffic order could be revised to accommodate this.
• The footway was to be widened on Pond Street at the location of the relocated bus stop which would have shelter, seating and would be close to the Royal Free Hospital entrance.
• The Royal Free Trust had not objected to the scheme or changes to the road layout. The objective of which was to ensure smoother traffic flow, this would however continue to be monitored and updated to reflect any revisions to the scheme, their impact alongside any relevant mitigation measures.
• With regards to the servicing requirements outside the Italian Deli, there would be double yellow lines with no curb lips. There was no loading bay southeast at this stage, although anything was possible and the outcome of the experimental scheme could determine whether this needed to be added if required.
• With regards to disabled bays, there were no bays being removed, however there were no bays in that location currently. Blue badge holders could park on double yellow lines which was still the situation.
• 3 residential parking bays were being removed, there would be a loss of any parking provision within those bays which would be monitored very closely during the trial as well as the impact on blue badge holders. If it were a requirement for blue badge holders during the trial period the blue badge process would be followed to ensure these users were catered for.
• The cost of the scheme was about £700,000 which was quite normal for a scheme of this scale.
• With regards to consultation engagement this was always a learning process for the Council and something which could be improved. The Council had recently completed a study undertaken by an independent consultant to look at how the Council engaged and consulted with stakeholders and how it could improve. This had resulted in a series of recommendations which the Council was working towards for future projects and was a continual theme as evidenced by the engagement undertaken with the Disability Oversight Panel during the development of the Camden Transport Strategy Plan. Where there were lessons to be learned from this process they would be taken on board.

The Chair noted that the Committee did not appear to recommend that the Council took a different direction on this issue but asked that officers continued to engage with residents and the deputee maintaining an open line of communication.

Officers agreed to provide direct contact details to the deputee after the meeting.

Action By: Transport and Design Manager

The Committee thanked the deputee for the deputation and attending the meeting.