Agenda item

The report will be presented by Councillor Harvey.

Councillor Harvey, Chair of the Green Travel Plans and Planning Conditions Spotlight Review Group, presented the findings and recommendations of the Group. He summarised its work with City Council Portfolio Holders and County Council officers having attended and highlighted the need for a new Task and Finish Group to focus on undertaking a monitoring exercise of IKEA’s Green Travel Plan to identify how future plans could be improved upon.

He identified the need for much greater investment on a national scale as a key issue to address problems of congestion and referred to the historic fragmentation of planning and highways functions in the UK, explaining that, although Devon County Council and the City Council worked in partnership, their roles were different. With ever increasing traffic volumes, major incidents such as those that had occurred on the M5 and at Haldon Hill impacted severely on the City’s road network. Examples of innovative schemes that had not progressed because of lack of funding were the Marsh Barton Rail Halt, an alternative rail link through Okehampton and the High Quality Transport System which would have been a commercially provided, laser guided bus service linking Cranbrook with Exeter as far as the University, with links to Pennsylvania and Topsham.

At a local level, a Member referred to parking problems in the Pennsylvania ward when school children were being drooped off and picked up for schools when cars parked blocking cycle routes and was advised that this matter should appropriately be raised at Exeter HATOC. Councillor Harvey also referred to the E4 strategic, bi directional, segregated cycle route leading from East Devon through Cumberland Way to the University in Exeter and to discussions on how best to route it through Union Road.

Members welcomed the work to date and the proposals for the Task and Finish Group, in particular to assess the role of the planning process and look to develop a more extensive policy package within planning conditions, including green travel conditions specifically tailored to each application.

Specific reference was made to the RD&E Hospital which employed some 7,000 people working different shifts but with only 600 parking spaces. As with other developments, there had been an impact on parking in residential areas, a Member referring to a suggestion for a multi storey car park as a possible solution to help meet parking demand which might appropriately have been considered during the planning stage of various buildings on the hospital site. Another Member referred to firms within the Sowton Estate who could have been encouraged in the planning stage to run shuttle buses for their staff to and from the City Centre. EDF Energy for example had insufficient parking spaces although it was noted that EDF was very supportive of green travel implementing its green travel plan effectively. The Member also referred to a reduced bus service in the Pinhoe area which had increased travel to work by car resulting in commuters parking in residential areas.

The Scrutiny Programme Officer reported that she had sufficient volunteers already for the Task and Finish Group but that further Members were very welcome to join. She also confirmed that representatives of the Exeter Cycling Campaign could be invited to participate. In response to a Member, she advised that, in respect of the yet to be formed Transport Board, the terms of reference were being drafted. She also reassured Members that there was considerable work behind the scenes between the City Council and Devon Council in respect of green travel initiatives. It was also noted that the Council had to make planning decisions within its policies and Government guidelines which made it difficult to refuse an application if it complied with these, even if Members were not entirely satisfied with the extent of the green travel plan provided.

She stated that Members’ views would be reported to Place Scrutiny Committee on 11 January which was also considering the Spotlight Review Group report.

Concluding, Members recognised the inherent challenges associated with the issues discussed, notably the adherence of the public to the convenience of car transport and the commercially driven ethos of public transport providers as recently exemplified by the withdrawal of the H bus service beyond St. David’s Station.

People - Scrutiny Committee:-

(1)        acknowledged the work of the Spotlight Review Group;

(2)        agreed to share the report and findings with:-

·         the (yet to be formed) Transport Board;

·         Devon County Council in respect of the Sustainable Urban Movement Plan;

·         With Exeter City Council officers responsible for implementing the Parking Strategy; and

·         Greater Exeter Strategic Partnership; and

(3)        supported the formation of a Task and Finish Group to expressly monitor the IKEA green travel plan and ascertain what improvements to Green Travel Plans could be made in future.