Archived decisions

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1. Summary

1.1 The following decision is sought:

That the Hampshire Local Transport Plan Annual Progress Report submitted to the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions be endorsed and that the approach to assessing performance against Hampshire's objectives and targets through delivery of the five year programme be approved.

2. Reasons

2.1 To report how Hampshire's Local Transport Plan is being implemented and the progress being made in working towards the national and local objectives, targets and outputs.

2.2 To seek additional funding for supplementary bids.

3. Other Options Considered and Rejected - Not applicable.

4. Conflicts of Interest Declared by the Decision Maker or a Member or Officer consulted - Not applicable.

5. Dispensation granted by the Standards Committee - Not applicable.

6. Reason(s) for the Matter being dealt with if Urgent - Not applicable.

Approved by: Date:

Councillor K B Estlin

7. Introduction

7.1 As part of the overall Local Transport Plan (LTP) process the County Council has a statutory obligation to produce an Annual Progress Report (APR) for the Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions (DTLR) in July/August each year. The APR is the chief mechanism for reporting back to Central Government on how the LTP is being implemented, and shows progress made in working towards national and local objectives and targets. The APR also provides an opportunity to show how progress is being monitored and reports on particular achievements in delivering the LTP to residents, interest groups and other stakeholders.

8. Overview of the Annual Progress Report

8.1 The APR was submitted on 31 August 2001. Although submission of the APR is a Government requirement, the County Council regards monitoring as an integral part of transport policy delivery and would wish to produce a progress and review document as a matter of course.

8.2 The APR starts with a summary of the LTP policy context. This is followed by a discussion of the Government's response to the LTP and covers the opportunities arising from the increased Government financial support. The body of the report concentrates on progress with delivery of investment programmes and policy initiatives.

8.3 There are supplementary bids for projects not identified in the LTP. These are for City-Vitality-Sustainability (CIVITAS) (£1.2 million), Charging Development Partnership (£300,000) and for fees to be incurred on consideration of schemes emanating from the M27 Integrated Transport Study (£100,000). The guidance issued to assist in preparing the APR precludes repeat submission of bids from the full LTP not met in the settlement, but these will be considered for possible extra funding.

8.4 A new bid for Major Schemes for which the County Council is seeking funding was submitted on 31 July 2001. The bid was agreed by the Environment Committee on 25 June 2001.

8.5 The APR concludes with details of the monitoring regime which is being taken forward.

9. Scheme Delivery

9.1 The APR covers the programme of schemes delivered in 2000/01 and the actions taken in preparing for the increased programme for 2001/02, together with an analysis of the programmes. Also outlined is the programme for the remaining four years of the LTP programme based on the allocations made in December 2000.

10. Monitoring Progress

10.1 Monitoring is an integral part of the LTP process, and fundamental to the assessment of progress made against the targets identified in the seven headline policy areas which form the benchmark against which success can be measured.

10.2 A systematic and comprehensive approach to the monitoring and evaluation of transport, economic, social and environmental activity has been developed over a number of years. It is based on monitoring of the Area Transport Strategies and the Transpol programme of household travel and attitudinal surveys.

10.3 The monitoring programme is structured so as to enable the collection of the information required to assess progress against the County Council's objectives and targets. It is very early in the process of project delivery and hence not yet appropriate to draw conclusions from the data, however all the current and subsequent information will be used to identify trends over the forthcoming LTP period.

11. Conclusion

11.1 Although early in the LTP five year period 2001/02 to 2005/06, much has already been achieved in the preparation and delivery of the first year's programme. Initial indications are that the County Council is on target to deliver its programmes, which are essential if it is to meet its policy objectives. A robust monitoring regime is in place, which will allow progress to be measured and reported in future APRs, and it is currently anticipated that the County Council's objectives and targets will be met.

11.2 There may be additional funding forthcoming from the Government, either for the supplementary bids included in the APR or retrospectively from the original LTP submission.

6658/KT