Agenda item

The Committee considered a report of the Corporate Director, Regeneration and Economic Development which sought to change the controlled parking zone system in operation at Grape Lane, Durham City from a shared zone to its own individual zone (for report see file of Minutes).

The Strategic Traffic Manager informed the Committee that Grape Lane was a small cul-de-sac, typically busy with cars. A proposal had come forward from a resident of Grape Lane to change the area from being part of zone I to become a zone of its own. Residents of Grape Lane were consulted on the proposals and were made aware that should the proposals go ahead, they would no longer be able to use their permits in other areas of Zone I. They would also have to use existing pay and display facilities to park on-street.

A consultation was sent to 36 residents in October, 2015. 25 responses were received, with 2 against, 23 in favour. The proposals were then formally advertised on site, with no objections being raised during the formal advertising period. One objection was received outside of the formal notice period and following advice from Legal Services, the objection was allowed to stand. The objector was present at the meeting to present their objection.

Councillor R Ormerod, local Councillor for the area accepted the representations that had been made by local residents but expressed concern that any decision may set a precedent for future requests. Whilst Councillor Ormerod cautiously supported the proposal, he explained that the introduction of the individual zone would not solve other problems which affected the surrounding Crossgate area, which he felt had too much through traffic. 

The Committee then heard from a local resident from Crossgate. The resident held a permit which permitted him to park in Grape Lane. The resident had chosen to park in Grape Lane during the majority of this time because the Crossgate area was always congested. The resident explained that if the proposals went ahead, he would no longer be able to park at Grape Lane.  The resident went onto explain that he had much empathy with residents of Grape Lane but had always managed to find a space in the street. The resident was unsure why residents living in the area felt that the proposal would solve their issues. The resident pleaded for some additional bays to be located in Crossgate should the proposal for Grape Lane be approved. Crossgate was currently ‘resident permit holders or pay and display Monday – Saturday 8am – 6pm. The objector considered that the pay and display aspect should be removed to allow a length of on-street parking to be made ‘permit holders only.

The Strategic Traffic Manager informed the Committee that proposals brought forward for consideration were all about striking the correct balance between city centre and residents parking. In terms of additional bays in Crossgate, the Committee were informed that mixed areas were available when parking zones were introduced in Crossgate, however, this became unsustainable moving forward. The issue of increased charges was a separate process and would need to be consulted as a separate issue.

In response, Councillor Ormerod commented that he didn’t agree entirely with the comments made by the Strategic Traffic Manager in relation to parking bays on Crossgate, but accepted that the Crossgate scheme was not up for discussion at the meeting and should be dealt as a separate issue.

Councillor O Gunn felt that the matter was not particularly easy to resolve and suggested that the scheme be reviewed and reassessed once it had been in operation for a period of time.

Councillor Turnbull expressed concern that cars may be displaced to other areas and cause problems in other streets. In response the Strategic Traffic Manager explained that displacement would not occur in this instance and didn’t believe that the ripple effect would transfer to other areas.

The Committee were generally supportive of the scheme given that it had been suggested by local residents, however, concerns remained at the potential negative impact the scheme could have on residents of Grape Lane.

Councillor Stradling commented that he would support the scheme, provided it was reviewed after six months of operation.  Councillor Tinsley seconded the amendment.

Resolved

The Committee recommended the removal of Grape Lane from Zone I to make it a stand-alone zone, with the scheme being subject to a full review after six months of operation, with the final decision to be made by the Corporate Director in accordance with the officer scheme of delegations.