To receive and note questions asked and statements made from members of the public on general matters of interest and/or matters relating to the work of the Forum.
Members of the public and visiting councillors may speak at the forum, provided they have registered to speak three working days in advance. Please contact Democratic Services by 5pm on the 4 February 2022 via democracy@winchester.gov.uk or (01962) 848 264 to register to speak and for further details.
Minutes:
Mr Spencer Allen addressed the meeting regarding several points related to Bluebell Way. Mr Allen felt that a lack of effective traffic calming measures was causing numerous issues such as vehicles speeding, vehicle noise nuisance, damaged manhole covers and general safety concerns. Mr Allen also raised concerns regarding the signage on the local shared cycle/pedestrian paths which he felt didn’t clearly indicate a shared pedestrian/cycle path.
Mr Alborough from Hampshire County Council responded to the points raised by Mr Allen. He informed that a speed check had been carried out on the section of Bluebell Way referred to. This speed check had indicated that the 85th percentile speed was 31 miles per hour and so was not significantly more than the speed limit of 30 miles per hour for that part of the road. However, Highways Officers were considering the need for an additional traffic calming measure beyond the bottom of the hill. Regarding the concerns over noise nuisance, he recommended that the City Council deploy an Environment Health officer to undertake a noise assessment. Regarding the broken manhole covers, he advised that an order had been placed for the replacement and details were awaited, in addition an offer had been made by the consortium to fix this specific manhole cover which would resolve the matter more quickly. Mr Alborough confirmed that he would contact Mr Allen when further details were known on this. Regarding the cycle path signage, Mr Alborough confirmed that he would investigate the points raised and confirm if additional signage was needed to be in place and would contact Mr Allen accordingly.
Several members of the forum also commented on the points raised by Mr Allen.
Councillor Hazel Croft-Phillips addressed the meeting on behalf of Whiteley Town Council. She thanked officers for the reports she had received following the July and November meetings of the forum. She asked for a verbal update regarding the achievements made in the installation of measures to support local wildlife such as bat boxes and hedgehog corridors. She also asked that following the City Council’s declaration of Climate Emergency, had any developers altered their plans regarding solar panels, electric charging points etc to meet national or local carbon reduction targets?
These points were responded to by the Chairperson and Mrs Pinnock. Regarding the measures for local wildlife, an update would be provided by Mr Davis of Tetra Tech later on the agenda. Regarding carbon reduction measures, Mrs Pinnock explained that planning permission had been granted for the North Whiteley Development and developers would be required to build according to the permission granted, it would be for the consortium to advise of any measures over and above those required by the planning permission.
Several members of the forum also commented on the points raised by Councillor Hazel Croft-Phillips.