Agenda item

This report makes recommendations on the future of 10 School Street schemes, which were implemented between September and November of 2020 under an Experimental Traffic Management Order (ETMO) that came into force on 1 September 2020.

The Committee received a report which outlined the recommendations on the future ten School Street schemes which were implemented between September and November 2020 under an Experimental Traffic Management Order that came into force on 1 September 2020.

Jayne Rusbatch (Head of Highways & Parking Service) provided the Committee with an introduction which set out:

-        School streets purpose aimed to discourage travel to school by car and promoted more active travel such as walking or cycling, which also improved air quality and reduced road congestion outside of schools.

-        Vehicle access restrictions was only operational during drop offs and pick up times of school term and was enforced by number plate cameras (ANPR); there was a number of exemptions to access these roads during the restricted times.

-        There were ten school streets as part of a wider programme including another ten additional schemes to be implemented in 2022/2023 subject to funding from TFL.

-        As part of the Statutory Guidance on Network Management to support recovery from Covid-19’ to support active travel, the Council implemented a tranche of schemes across ten schools between September and December 2020 under Experimental Traffic Management Order (ETMOs) for a period of eighteen months. This expired in February 2022.

-        A number of objections had been received during the objection period, which was disrupted due to the restriction of a pandemic lockdown in December 2020 and resulted in a suspended enforcement of the ten experimental school street schemes between December 2020 and March 2021. The objection period was not extended, following the amendment of the ETMO in October 2020 and whilst this was an administrative oversight, this would not have changed the recommended way forward as we need to undertake a meaningful consultation.

In response to questions raised by the Committee, officers provided the following information:

-        To ensure that administrative processes are adhered to, a new tracker for Traffic Management Order consultations is to be implemented.. Legally previous responses from the first consultation period could not be considered, though we have considered the responses in recommending adding additional signage on the approaches to four of the school streets.

-        There is a dedicated team who prepare the Traffic Management Orders within the Highways and Parking service. To ensure that administrative processes are adhered to, a new tracker for Traffic Management Order consultations is to be implemented. This tracker will log and all trtraffic orders (including experimenatal and temporary orders); the service will  notify objectors who had responded to  the first ETMO consultation so that if they wish to they can respond again, as their initial response can not be  taken forward.

-        The proposed monitoring equipment to be installed was consistent with the equipment used to minotir air quality and traffic in the healthy neighbourhoods. For the initial six months the equipment will be installed in the School Streets, and after that period it  can be relocated to monitor the effects of the schemes to address concerns of traffic dispersal and air quality onto immediate adjacent other roads.

-        Individuals receiving PCNs in error (outside of the restricted time) could appeal though the appeal process. There were exemption permits in place for those using the roads during the restricted times, and for schools specifically there was a process in place for a exemption permit to be applied for visitors to the schools.

-        There were existing arrangements for schools to email in advance of their visitors to process and provide permit exemptions, even for the unexpected visitor as there was a time period between the contravention being processed and the  issuing of a PCN; a web portal is being developed to streamline the exemption process for schools.

RESOLVED: to recommend to the Cabinet Member for Sustainable Croydon to:

1.1           Note that the School Streets Experimental Traffic Management Order (ETMO) (order reference 2020/30) in respect of the 10 school street areas identified at 1.4 below, effective from 1 September 2020 expired on 28 February 2022 (the ‘Expired ETMO’).

1.2           Note that 123 representations were received during the first six months of the Expired ETMO being in force (detailed in Appendix A) and that a petition was received from residents of Court Avenue / Tudor Close at full Council on 5 July 2021, the content of which is discussed, in section 4.3.10.

1.3           Note that the six month period for objection:

1.3.1  coincided with school closures for the period from13 December 2020 to 8 March 2021;

1.3.2  did not coincide with a period of ‘business as usual’ traffic due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic and resulting periods of lockdown;

1.3.3. contained inconsistent enforcement; and

1.3.4. was not extended to enable objections to be received for six months from the point of amendment of the Expired ETMO on 30 October 2022; the result of which is that the objection period was insufficient for the Council to take a decision on progressing the expired ETMO to a permanent traffic regulation order.

1.4           That the Traffic Management Advisory Committee recommend to the Cabinet Member for Sustainable Croydon to introduce 10 School Streets at the following sites:

(i) Christ Church CofE Primary School (Purley Oaks & Riddlesdown)

(ii) Downsview Primary School (Norbury Park)

(iii) Ecclesbourne Primary School (Bensham Manor)

(iv) Harris Primary Academy Haling Park (South Croydon)

(v) Keston Primary School (Old Coulsdon)

(vi) Harris Primary Academy Croydon (Broad Green)

(vii) Oasis Academy Reylands (Woodside)

(viii) Ridgeway Primary School (Sanderstead)

(ix) St Thomas Becket Catholic Primary (Woodside)

(x) St Joseph’s Catholic Junior School (Crystal Palace & Upper Norwood)’

By the making of 10 ETMOs to operate for up to 18 months as detailed at paragraph 4.2.1 of this report.

1.5           Authorise officers to inform the relevant stakeholders of the decision

1.6           To delegate to the Road Space Manager, Sustainable Communities Division to vary the ETMOs once made as part of the experiment.

1.7           Authorise officers to install the relevant equipment that allows the collection of traffic and air quality data for the 10 School Street sites.

1.8           Authorise officers to install the identified additional advanced warning signs at 4 School Street sites.