Minutes:
18.1 Councillor Davis left the meeting at 9:40am.
18.2 Councillor Fleming introduced the report to the committee outlining that the strategy was the result of consultation and stakeholder engagement, consultation process included a residents’ survey and roadshows to gather data. The process was supported by 2020 Consultancy which provided national expertise. A Department for Transport traffic forecasting tool was also utilised to predict future traffic needs in the district. This had allowed for a greater understanding of the public, residential, and commercial needs in the districts. The resulting schemes from this data will be assessed for their viability and may involve other organisations such as Suffolk Highways. She thanked the officers involved for their work on the strategy.
18.3 Councillor Ekpenyong questioned whether the predicted growth had been on the usage of existing car parks. The Parking Services Manager responded that this had been based on current usage of the car parks. Councillor Fleming added that the strategy did not rule out the possibility of adding additional car parks.
18.4 Councillor Lindsay queried how the Council’s parking ambitions had been decided, and whether this was linked to the Joint Area Management Plan and the climate goals. The Parking Services Manager responded that the consultants and portfolio holders had decided what the ambitions would be, and these ambitions were linked to the climate emergency declaration.
18.5 Councillor Ayres raised concern that the survey had been done in August 2021 and may not reflect current needs. Councillor Fleming responded that the Council were aware of the effects of Covid-19 when the survey was taking place. The Director – Environment and Commercial Partnerships added that when projects within the strategy were being developed that further evidence would be gathered.
18.6 Councillor Caston questioned how the online survey had been promoted and how was it ensured that the responses were diverse. The Parking Services Manager responded that the survey had been promoted through social media and QR codes at in person events. Virtual and in person workshops were also utilised and a QR code was provided to allow attendees to complete the survey and paper copies were provided to those who could not access the online survey. Local businesses were also provided with QR codes and paper copies of the survey.
18.7 Councillor Ekpenyong questioned who would be creating the implementation plan and what the timeframe for implementation would be. Councillor Fleming responded that the implementation plan would be started once the strategy had been approved at Cabinet. It would be an ongoing plan as there would be long term and shorter-term projects. The Director – Environmental and Commercial Partnerships added that the implementation plan itself would not take very long to put together and a delivery group formed of officers from different services would be involved in delivering the plan.
18.8 Councillor Carter questioned whether the strategy was a living document. Councillor Fleming responded that the strategy itself was not a living document, however the implementation plan would be.
18.9 Councillor Scarff questioned how the strategy would inform the planning process. Councillor Fleming responded that planning decisions would need to take into account the strategy and it would be used in pre-planning advice and committee decisions.
18.10 Councillor Scarff queried what the process for the strategy was going forward and whether it would go to Overview and Scrutiny or Cabinet. Councillor Fleming responded that information may go to Overview and Scrutiny for information and noting. The Director – Environment and Commercial Partnerships added that the business case and proper process would go to Cabinet but smaller changes such as sign changes would not go to committee.
18.11 Councillor Welham questioned how the strategy would be developed towards a new normal. Councillor Fleming responded that the strategy would be available to be reviewed every 3-5 years.
18.12 Councillor Welham queried whether Suffolk County Council had been involved in the process of preparing the strategy. The Parking Services Manager responded that regular briefing sessions took place with Suffolk County Council and that they would be involved in street parking matters.
18.13 Councillor Welham questioned whether the prediction method took into account cost of fuel and whether the predictions would be accurate due to recent economic changes. Councillor Fleming responded that the most current available government model had been used.
18.14 Councillor Ekpenyong questioned what process would be adopted and whether this would be one overarching plan, or a series of supplementary plans. The Director – Environment and Commercial Partnerships responded that this would be within the implementation plan, and that this would contain longer and shorter-term priorities.
18.15 Councillor Lindsay queried the evidence base used to inform the strategy including the figures showing that 40-50% of journeys had been less than 1.5 miles and whether in relation to this that the strategy could be used to try and change the behaviour of residents. Councillor Fleming responded that within the survey cycle parking in addition to car parking so this may have an impact on distances. In addition to this there may be effects in terms of the age of residents and weather conditions when it comes to length of journeys. The model took into account the demographic of the area and was not based on national statistics.
18.16 Councillor Lindsay questioned how parking would be provided whilst reducing the environmental impact. Councillor Fleming responded that it was the Council’s duty to provide parking and accommodate cars despite the friction.
18.17 Councillor Caston questioned how much weight had been given to existing issues and what data was there on these previous issues. The Parking Services Manager responded that there was data from Ipswich Borough Council and West Suffolk Council on penalty notices that had been issued in car parks, additionally payment machines showed how many cars had parked and for how long.
18.18 Members debated the issues and made the following observations:
18.19 Members raised concern about the environmental impact of the strategy and that case studies on reduced parking to reduce parking to aid environmental issues should be looked at.
18.20 Councillor Ekpenyong proposed the recommendations as detailed in the report.
18.21 Councillor Ayres seconded this motion.
By a unanimous vote
It was RESOLVED: -
1.1 That the Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee note the content of the report and that a verbal presentation of the comments made at this meeting be provided to Cabinet
1.2 That Cabinet is requested to carry out further work to replace carparking demands with alternatives by looking at other areas that have done so successfully.
1.3 That the Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee asks that a report be provided to the Committee in due course to review the progress on the Parking strategy implementation plan.
Supporting documents: