Agenda Document Pack - Petitions Committee - 19/04/2023
South Lanarkshire Council · 19 April 2023
Back to Petitions Committee — 19 April 2023 and its agenda
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Council Offices, Almada Street Hamilton, ML3 0AA Tuesday, 11 April 2023 Dear Councillor Petitions Committee The Members listed below are requested to attend a meeting of the above Committee to be held as follows:- Date: Wednesday, 19 April 2023 Time: 10:00 Venue: Hybrid - Committee Room 1, Council Offices, Almada Street, Hamilton, ML3 0AA The business to be considered at the meeting is listed overleaf. Yours sincerely Cleland Sneddon Chief Executive Members Alistair Fulton (Chair), Richard Nelson (Depute Chair), Mary Donnelly, Mark Horsham, Susan Kerr, Eileen Logan, Norman Rae, Graham Scott, Helen Toner Substitutes Alex Allison, Robert Brown, Archie Buchanan, Allan Falconer, Lesley McDonald, Dr Ali Salamati 1
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BUSINESS 1 Declaration of Interests Item(s) for Decision 2 Petition Requesting Traffic Calming Measures at Westwood Hill, East Kilbride Report dated 4 April 2023 by the Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources). (Copy attached) 3 - 8 Urgent Business 3 Urgent Business Any other items of business which the Chair decides are urgent. For further information, please contact:- Clerk Name: Carol Lyon Clerk Telephone: 07385370065 Clerk Email: carol.lyon@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 2
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Report Agenda Item Report to: Petitions Committee Date of Meeting: 19 April 2023 Report by: Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) Subject: Petition Requesting Traffic Calming Measures at Westwood Hill, East Kilbride 1. Purpose of Report 1.1. The purpose of the report is to:- [purpose] allow the Petitions Committee to consider a petition lodged by Kris McFadyen (Lead Petitioner) [1purpose] 2. Recommendation(s) 2.1. The Petitions Committee is asked to:- [recs] (1) give due consideration to the petition lodged requesting traffic calming measures at Westwood Hill, East Kilbride. [1recs] 3. Background 3.1. A petition has been lodged with the Council which meets the Guidelines as:- the matter has been raised with the Council prior to submission and relates to issues that affect the community the number of petitioners exceeds the minimum limit of 50 4. Petition Details 4.1. The petition requests traffic calming measures at Westwood Hill, East Kilbride. The statement by the lead petitioner states that:- “The purpose of the petition is to persuade the Council that the provision of traffic calming measures/pedestrian crossing facilities on Westwood Hill is both desirable and a necessity. This could be pedestrian crossings and traffic calming road engineering which would serve to reduce the speed of traffic and make Westwood Hill safer for pedestrians to cross. In the 21st century having public/pedestrian safety measures should be a given, a standard and not something that the Council may provide if officials see fit. The onus cannot and should not be placed upon Police Scotland alone to deal with the majority of drivers who travel at speeds far in excess of the 30 mile an hour statutory limit. It is clear that Police Scotland do not have the manpower nor resources to do. By placing all responsibility upon Police Scotland, Council officials are negating the responsibility that they have for public safety. 2 3
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Further, Police Scotland have no responsibility for the volume of Traffic using Westwood Hill.” 5. Support for Petition 5.1. The petition contains 116 signatories broken down as follows:- 113 signatories from East Kilbride 2 signatories from other areas in South Lanarkshire 1 signatory from other location in Scotland 6. Comments from Roads and Transportation Services 6.1. As further background on the terms of the petition, Roads and Transportation Services have provided the following comments:- South Lanarkshire Council has a responsibility to allocate available resources in a manner that contributes to a reduction in the number of deaths and injuries resulting from road accidents across the entirety of the Council area. This is achieved through partnership working with other organisations, including Police Scotland and the Scottish Government, and with other Council services to deliver a combination of education, enforcement and engineering measures. To ensure the highest rate of return on any engineering measures, the Council produces a list of priority sites or routes for potential treatment on an annual basis. These are the locations where the introduction of engineering measures is anticipated to have the greatest impact on casualty reduction. The primary criterion by which a site or route is included in this list is its recent accident history. Experience has shown that the most likely locations for an accident to occur are those in which a number of accidents with similar contributory factors have occurred in the recent past. Currently, a significant number of locations across South Lanarkshire have been identified for potential treatment using this method. Given current resource levels, we anticipate that we will be able to apply engineering measures to approximately 5% of these, should any such measures be identified as an appropriate solution. Westwood Hill has not been included in this year’s list of sites for potential treatment. Consequently, this location does not have priority for engineering measures at this time. The majority of drivers assist with casualty reduction by undertaking their journeys in a considerate and courteous manner. It is acknowledged, however, that there will always be some drivers who drive in a manner or at a speed inappropriate to the prevailing conditions. Although it has not been possible in this instance to enact an engineering solution, enforcement may be suitable at this location to address any speeding concerns. Should inappropriate driving practices continue at this location, Police Scotland should be contacted by telephoning their 101-helpline number for non-emergency enquiries or by using the web link provided below. https://www.scotland.police.uk/secureforms/contact/ Following liaison with Police Scotland we can advise that it is their intention to arrange for additional enforcement action to be undertaken on Westwood Hill commensurate with their other commitments. 4
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This resource has been monitoring traffic volumes within East Kilbride for a number of years. A fully classified traffic volume survey was undertaken for all of the main local distributer roads within East Kilbride in 2015 which were all observed to be well within the capacity stated within the ‘Design Manual for Roads and Bridges’ (DMRB). Westwood Hill was not included in this assessment as it is considered lower in roads hierarchy than those roads serving it such as Westwood Road and The Murray Road. Roads of a lower hierarchal standard than these roads, such as Westwood Hill, will, therefore, carry a similar or significantly lower volume of traffic. In 2021, the Council arranged for a traffic volume survey to be undertaken on 3 sections of the local distributer network surveyed in 2015 to compare the traffic volume data. The results of this exercise concluded that there was a 17% drop in vehicular traffic for the best-case scenario and a 4% increase in the worst-case scenario. Since 2020, the impact of the recent pandemic has impacted upon traffic growth which saw a significant dip in traffic volumes. To date, monitoring of this data has seen a return of these volumes to what was similar to pre pandemic levels, however, the traffic volumes are spread across a typical day rather than the morning and evening peaks which may be attributed to the increase in home working arrangements. Taking all of the above into consideration, and our officer’s familiarity with the area, we are satisfied that there is not a capacity issue upon Westwood Hill. When considering the introduction of a crossing facility the Council undertakes a ‘Gap Assessment’ to determine whether there is reasonable opportunity for pedestrians to cross a road safely. The number of gaps between vehicles that exceed the time required to cross the road at a relatively slow walking pace are considered, along with the pedestrian demand and any local factors such as the presence of nearby community facilities. This method allows each location to be ranked to reflect the priority for a crossing facility when compared to other assessed locations. A pedestrian crossing survey was undertaken on Westwood Hill within vicinity of its priority junction with Rockhampton Avenue in September 2021. The survey showed Westwood Hill to be of low priority when compared to other assessed locations. Taking all of the above into consideration, Westwood Hill cannot be considered for a crossing facility at this time. A school crossing patroller operates on Westwood Hill at its mini roundabout junction with Westwood Road and on Westwood Hill within the vicinity of its priority junction with New Plymouth. Each of these school crossing patrol locations incorporate advance warning signing to highlight to drivers that a school crossing patroller is operating at these locations. We are satisfied that these measures are satisfactory for the level of pedestrian demand experienced during the school run for both Duncanrig Secondary School and Canberra Primary School. 7. Options open to the Committee 7.1. In terms of the approved guidance, the Petitions Committee can:- agree that the issues raised deserve further action and agree to refer the petition to another Council Committee, officer or other organisation with recommendations agree that the issue raised does not merit further action refer back to the Resource with recommendations for further action 5
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8. Employee Implications 8.1 There are no employee implications as a result of this report. 9. Financial Implications 9.1. There are no financial implications at this time. 10. Climate Change, Sustainability and Environmental Implications 10.1 There are no implications for climate change, sustainability or the environment in terms of the information contained in this report. 11. Other Implications 11.1 There are no implications for risk in terms of the information contained in this report. 12. Equality Impact Assessment and Consultation Arrangements 12.1. This report does not introduce a new policy, function or strategy or recommend a change to an existing policy, function or strategy and, therefore, no impact assessment is required. 12.2. There is also no requirement to undertake any consultation in terms of the information contained in the report. Paul Manning Executive Director (Finance and Corporate Resources) 4 April 2023 Link(s) to Council Values/Priorities/Outcomes Accountable, effective, efficient and transparent Previous References None List of Background Papers None Contact for Further Information If you would like to inspect the background papers or want further information, please contact:- Carol Lyon, Administration Officer Ext: 5652 (Tel: 01698 455652) E-mail: carol.lyon@southlanarkshire.gov.uk 6
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