Issue - meetings

REPORT OF THE SERVICE DIRECTOR – REGULATORY

At the February meeting of Overview and Scrutiny it was agreed to trial focusing meetings based on areas of Executive Member responsibility. This report provides the Committee with an update on the Planning and Transport Portfolio, supported by the latest updates on the relevant projects, risks and performance indicators within this area.

RESOLVED: That the Overview & Scrutiny Committee note the report and its appendices.

REASON FOR DECISION: This report was following the request of the Committee for an update on the Planning and Transport portfolio.

Audio recording – 1 hours 4 minutes 48 seconds

The Service Director – Regulatory presented the report entitled ‘Planning & Transport Portfolio Update’ and advised that Building Control was the only area under Planning & Transport that was not covered within the report. He invited Members to ask any questions that they may have.

The following Members asked questions:

·                Councillor Ralph Muncer

·                Councillor Donna Wright

·                Councillor Elizabeth Dennis

·                Councillor Jon Clayden

·                Councillor Martin Prescott

·                Councillor Matt Barnes

·                Councillor Louise Peace

·                Councillor Tom Tyson

In response to questions, Councillor Val Bryant advised that:

·                The Interim Executive Member for Planning & Transport had given their apologies for this meeting.

·                The appointment of a permanent Executive Member for Planning & Transport could be expected to take place around the time of the Annual Council meeting.

·                Discussion around using the Community Safety Budget to upgrade lampposts to smart lampposts had taken place. These would house CCTV cameras and EV charging points and they would try to account for as many lampposts as possible before undertaking this to spread the costs of the project. 

In response to questions, the Strategic Planning & Projects Manager advised that:

·                Consultants had been commissioned to investigate access options to Hitchin Station not just from the eastern side, but under the bridge to the station as well. The options had been presented to Network Rail and they were waiting for them to respond. Once a response had been received, they would be able to provide an update and narrow down the options to take forward.

·                The Senior Transport Policy Officer worked with both the Master Planning Team at North Herts Council and the County Council. When planning applications were received, they would advise the Planning Development Team on recommendations that could be made to facilitate the Local Transport Plan. 

·                The County Council were prioritising some of the more important routes in the Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCWIP) and s106 contributions would be directed to these going forward.

In response to questions, the Service Director – Regulatory advised that:

·                A Project Prioritisation Programme was in place and timelines for projects were led by statutory and grant deadlines. Everything else that was not dictated by one of these deadlines was done in discussion with the portfolio holder.

·                Highways were responsible for pavements across the district, and they had been awarded £6.7 million of Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Funding (LEVI) for on-street charging purposes. The Council would be presenting their case for their share of the funding along with the other ten District and Borough Councils across the County.

·                Most lampposts were located at the back of pavements, therefore solutions such as retractable bollards may need to be implemented to facilitate on-street EV charging where this was the case.

·                It would not be financially viable for most EV charging companies to install charging points in rural areas, therefore the Council would allow the installation of EV charging points in their car parks to increase the availability of EV charging points to rural residents when visiting towns  ...  view the full minutes text for item 94