Agenda and minutes

An apology for absence was received from Councillors P Groves and  M Parsons.

To give consideration to the minutes of the meeting held on 18 June 2018

Consideration was given to the minutes of the meeting held on 18 June 2018.

RESOLVED

That the minutes be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

To provide an opportunity for Members and Officers to declare any disclosable pecuniary and non-pecuniary interests in any item on the agenda.

There were no declarations of interest

To provide an opportunity for Members to declare the existence of a party whip in relation to any item on the agenda.

There were no whipping declarations.

A total period of 15 minutes is allocated for members of the public to make a statement(s) on any matter that falls within the remit of the Committee.

Individual members of the public may speak for up to 5 minutes, but the Chairman will decide how the period of time allocated for public speaking will be apportioned, where there are a number of speakers.

Note: In order for officers to undertake any background research, it would be helpful if members of the public contacted the Scrutiny officer listed at the foot of the agenda, at least one working day before the meeting to provide brief details of the matter to be covered. 

S Helliwell spoke in respect of the  Local Transport Plan consultation stating that overall the response rate were low. This could be due apathy or a feeling Cheshire East Council take no notice of views. In Alsager, the bus consultation had one the highest response rates. However Alsager had one of the lowest response rates for this consultation 

Poynton and Disley had  quite a few mentions of the road network. This proved shared space was not working in Poynton and she hoped Cheshire East followed the advice of Chair of the Women and Equalities Committee, Maria Miller MP in July 2017 who said “With the call to halt the use of shared space schemes, the suspension of the flawed 2011 Local Transport Note on shared space and the commitment to update guidance to local authorities, the Government is finally showing the leadership we called for in our 2017 report into disability and the built environment". She hoped Cheshire East Council remembered these words when granting  any new developments, including pedestrian pavements, whether on green fields or green belt.

C Jones, Chair of the Crewe Bus User Group, had concerns regarding the poor condition of Crewe bus station, stating that action needed to be taken as there were health and safety issues. The regeneration of the bus station should therefore be investigated.

To give consideration to the draft Cheshire East Air Quality Action Plan

Minute 16, 17 and 18 were taken together by the Committee.

Consideration was given to the Cheshire East Air Quality Action Plan 2018 Review, Air Quality Strategy and Low Emissions Strategy.

Local authorities had a duty under the Environment Act 1995 to review and assess local air quality within their area, against a set of health-based objectives for a number of specific air pollutants. If any areas were found where pollutants exceeded the objectives, local authorities were required to declare an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) and to prepare an Air Quality Action Plan (AQAP) setting out measures they intended to introduce in order to reduce concentrations of air pollutants, in pursuit of achieving the objectives.  The Air Quality Strategy set out how air quality would  be considered in all relevant decision making processes across the Council to ensure that any impacts to air quality were taken into account and actions in the AQAP were implemented where possible. The Air Quality Action Plan 2018 had been produced as part of the statutory duties required by the Local Air Quality Management framework.

The Low Emissions Strategy covered a package of policies and measures focused on reducing emissions from road vehicles across the Borough, supporting more sustainable modes of transport and mitigating the transport impacts of development with the aim of improving the health of residents.

Following consideration of the reports, the Committee resolved to make the following recommendations to the Portfolio Holder for Housing and Planning/Cabinet:

RESOLVED

That the Portfolio Holder for Housing and Planning/Cabinet given consideration to the following recommendations:

·         The Air Quality Strategy needed to be SMARTER.

·         Low emissions public transport vehicles and service vehicles should be encouraged.

·         Electric charging points should be provided in key centres e.g. Macclesfield.

·         Establishing Low emission zones should be explored.

·         There should be incentives for private hire/hackney carriage drivers to use electric vehicles.

·         In relation to site specific measure MIDD1 of the Air Quality Action Plan, it was agreed that freight and delivery management should be looked at for all areas of the borough.

·         That all box junctions be maintained to ensure that they are clearly visible.

·         Following a recent planning application approval, specific measure MACC2 of the Air Quality Action Plan, was now out of date and should be rewritten.

·         Paragraph 2.1 of the Low Emissions Strategy be updated to reflect works to the A556.

·         The provision of electric car charging points be a planning condition for new builds where this is appropriate

·         Assurance be given that the Air Quality and Parking Strategies do not contradict each other and are coordinated accordingly. Suitable public transport should be provided prior to restricting public parking in key service areas.

To give consideration to the draft Air Quality Strategy

This item was considered alongside the Cheshire East Air Quality Action Plan 2018 review.

To give consideration to the draft Cheshire East Low Emission Strategy

This item was considered alongside the Cheshire East Air Quality Action Plan 2018 Review.

To give consideration to the results of the consultation

Consideration was given to the outcomes and progress following the consultation for the updated Local Transport Plan (LTP) for Cheshire East.

Following consideration of the reports the Committee resolved to make the following comments to Cabinet:

·         The response to the consultation was low

·         A root and branch review of bus services should be undertaken.

·         Parking restrictions in town centres would require improved public transport.

·         Businesses should be supported to provide suitable travel plans.

·         Residents in rural areas felt let down by the Council. They were in danger of rural isolation, which affected mental health.

·         Road safety and the bus service were both poor in rural communities.

·         That the final LTP be considered by the Committee prior to Cabinet.

RESOLVED

·         That Cabinet be requested to give consideration to the comments highlighted above

·         That the draft LTP be considered by the Committee prior to Cabinet.

To give consideration to the consultation

Consideration was given to the draft Cemeteries Strategy. The Corporate Manager Commissioning - Waste and Environmental Services highlighted to the Committee that whilst there was no statutory requirement to have a strategy, there was currently an inconsistent approach across the Borough. Comments from the Committee would be considered as part of the consultation process. It was noted that the strategy only referred to those churches that responded to the consultation.

It was agreed that the Portfolio Holder be requested to give consideration to the following comments :

·         The quality of maintenance in cemeteries needed to standardised across the Borough.

·         There needed to be adequate capacity to deal with the number of cremations in Macclesfield and Crewe.

·         The possibility of providing natural burials be explored.

RESOLVED

That the Portfolio Holder for Regeneration be requested to give consideration to the comments highlighted above when considering the strategy.

To give consideration to the areas of the forward plan which fall within the remit of the Committee.

Consideration was given to the areas of the forward plan which fell within the remit of the Committee.

RESOLVED

That the forward plan be received.

To give consideration to the work programme

Consideration was given to the work programme. It was agreed that the draft Local Transport Plan and licensing of taxi vehicles in relation to home to school transport be added to the work programme.

RESOLVED

That the work programme be amended to reflect the above issues.