Archived decisions
Hampshire County Council Central Hampshire Area Rural Transport Strategy 9 November 2001 Progress Report Report of the County Surveyor |
Item 4 |
Contact: Julie Jarvis, ext 6592
1. Summary
1.1 This report sets out the progress on several schemes currently being undertaken to implement the Central Hampshire Rural Transport Strategy (CHARTS) as follows:
(i) Denmead village improvements;
(ii) B2177/B3354 Twyford-Wickham corridor;
(iii) Otterbourne traffic calming scheme (Phase 2);
(iv) A325 Corridor - Coxbridge roundabout to county boundary multi-modal study; and
(v) A3 Hindhead improvement.
2. Denmead Village Improvements
2.1 On 30 July 2001 the County Council received the draft plans for the Denmead village environmental improvements produced by Winchester City Council. These draft plans include off-road environmental improvements treating forecourts in front of the shops by resurfacing, rationalising parking and improving pedestrian routes. A scheme for traffic calming has also been incorporated in the draft plans and officers from the County Council have given their formal comments to officers of Winchester City Council. Winchester City Council has now allocated staff resources to continue with the design of the draft traffic calming and environmental improvement scheme to a suitable stage for public consultation. At the consultation stage the scheme details will be forwarded to the West of Waterlooville Working Party (involving Members of Winchester City Council, Havant Borough Council and invited representatives from Hampshire County Council, Portsmouth City Council and East Hampshire District Council) for information in relation to the proposed Major Development Area (MDA). The City Council is currently preparing an estimate of fees and costs for the Denmead works, together with a project plan. It may be that additional measures will be required over and above the scheme currently being prepared to mitigate the impact associated with the proposed Waterlooville MDA.
3. B3335/B3354/B2177/A334 Twyford-Wickham Corridor
3.1 Proposals are included within CHARTS to develop initiatives on transport corridors to promote strategic bus routes, improvements to cycle and pedestrian facilities, road safety and improving connections to transport interchanges. CHARTS includes a commitment to develop three route strategies and one of these is for the Twyford to Wickham corridor.
3.2 A focussed consultation has been undertaken with parish councils along the line of the route, with copies also sent to District and County Councillors, as well as transport operators and interested local businesses. The route strategy covers the length of the B2177 between Twyford and Wickham, but this consultation did not include proposals for the Twyford and Fishers Pond junction, which are further progressed.
3.3 Each consultee has been sent a briefing note on the route strategy, together with a route plan and questionnaire, which are attached as Appendices 1 and 2. Responses from parish councils were requested by 10 October 2001 and these are currently being collated and will be reported to the next CHARTS Members' Panel. The strategy will then be progressed by undertaking a feasibility design for each section. Proposals will at that stage be subject to separate public consultations with the appropriate parish councils.
4. Otterbourne Traffic Calming Scheme (Phase 2)
4.1 The traffic calming proposals for the C230 Main Road and Otterbourne Hill in Otterbourne (Appendix 3) have been developed to a point where approval to proceed with the implementation of the measures is being sought from the appropriate County Council Executive Member in November 2001, in anticipation of a commencement of works on site in January 2002. The proposal is estimated to cost £575,000. The scheme is being developed to help mitigate the effects of the lorry movements associated with the materials recovery facility and waste transfer station in Otterbourne.
4.2 The package of measures includes a reduction of the existing 40 miles per hour (mph) speed limit to 30 mph, supported by the implementation of chicanes on Otterbourne Hill, to control downhill traffic speeds; new mini-roundabouts at the Kiln Lane and Coles Mede junctions; pedestrian refuges and new off-road cycle facilities on Otterbourne Hill. The proposed cycle facilities on Otterbourne Hill involve the reallocation of existing carriageway space from motorists to cyclists and will enable cyclists to avoid the chicanes proposed for the hill. This link will form part of the Winchester to Eastleigh cycle route which is currently being developed under the CHARTS cycling programme. This programme is contributing £50,000 towards the construction of this facility.
4.3 Ultimately, this off-road facility will be extended into nearby Boyatt Lane, where cyclists will be able to continue on-road towards Eastleigh, and, as an off-road facility, to Thornden Secondary School on Winchester Road, Chandlers Ford. This element is expected to be developed after the completion of the traffic calming proposals, under the `Safer Routes to School' programme, and will provide an off-road cycle facility between Otterbourne village and Thornden School.
4.4 A public consultation exercise was undertaken in July 2001 which identified a 75% level of public support for the proposals. The proposed 30 mph speed limit will be implemented upon the completion of the traffic calming measures, which is expected during April/May 2002.
5. A325 Corridor - Coxbridge Roundabout (A31) to County Boundary Multi-Modal Study
5.1 Surrey County Council has commissioned consultants to undertake a multi-modal transport study for the A325 within Surrey, to the south of Farnham, between A31 Coxbridge roundabout and the Surrey/ Hampshire border at Rowledge (Appendix 4).
5.2 The section of the A325 corridor in Surrey covers the residential areas of South Farnham, including Wrecclesham where the road bisects the village resulting in community severance and concerns about road safety.
5.3 The County Council and East Hampshire District Council have been invited by Surrey County Council to nominate Councillor representatives for a Steering Group to oversee the study. Councillor Filer will be the representative for the County Council and Councillor Cowper for East Hampshire District Council. This formal approach is welcomed, given that Hampshire County Council has an adopted A325 Route Strategy - Greatham to Holt Pound (December 1996) - for the section of the A325 south of the Surrey/Hampshire boundary. It is intended to keep Members informed on the progress of the study.
6. A3 Hindhead Improvement
6.1 On 28 March 2001 the Government announced that the A3 Hindhead scheme had been added to the Targeted Programme of improvements. The scheme to be progressed is the preferred route announced in March 1993 and includes 1.7 kilometre long bored tunnels under Hindhead Common in Surrey. When work on this scheme was suspended in 1995, due to lack of funds, much of the work had already been done and the scheme had almost reached the point where draft Orders could have been published. The Highways Agency is reviewing this work in the light of up to date techniques, standards and policies. A map of the proposed scheme is attached as Appendix 5.
6.2 In 2000 a study was undertaken by consultants MVA to see whether the economic and environmental benefits could be delivered in part by user charging. The conclusion was that charging for using the tunnel would cause significant amounts of traffic to divert onto unsuitable alternative routes and therefore would not be economically viable. A report of the County Surveyor on the emerging findings on this study was presented to the County Council's former Planning and Transportation Committee on 22 January 2001. Comments by the County Council were reported to the South East of England Regional Assembly and the Highways Agency. The County Council welcomed the proposals for improvements to the A3 but had some key concerns. While there will be localised impacts on Hampshire roads with and without tolling, there is the lack of a clear investigation into the impacts along the A3 corridor within Hampshire, particularly at its southern end. This is required to enable the identification of measures necessary to relieve any resultant problems.
6.3 Consultation on the scheme is under way and the Highways Agency has set up a Project Advisory Group (PAG) as a means of exchanging information and discussing matters of mutual interest and concern. The objective is to ensure that all the right issues are covered in the lead-up to the publication of the draft Orders and Environmental Statement. The PAG consists of officers from County and District Councils (including Hampshire County Council and East Hampshire District Council), together with representatives of other key organisations representing environmental interests. A Wider Reference Group has also been set up, comprising representatives from local parish and town councils, local interest and action groups, and local Members from the District and County Councils.
6.4 The Highways Agency is keeping the public and interested parties informed of the scheme progress with the production of six monthly newsletters, starting August 2001 through to the end of construction. Copies of the newsletter will be available at the meeting. On 7 and 8 September 2001 a public exhibition on the proposed scheme was held in Hindhead. Initial comments on the scheme have been sought from officers and these are in the process of being collated and forwarded to the Highways Agency for consideration. A copy of these officer comments will also be forwarded to the Executive Member for Environment and the Chairman of this Panel for information.
Recommendation
That progress on the studies and schemes set out in this report be noted.
Section 100 D - Local Government Act 1972 - background papers | |
The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report. | |
NB the list excludes: | |
1. |
Published works. |
2. |
Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act. |
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None |
6737/JJ
APPENDIX 1
CENTRAL HAMPSHIRE RURAL TRANSPORT STRATEGY
B2177 ROUTE CORRIDOR DRAFT PROPOSALS
INTRODUCTION
As part of the Government's expanded package of funding for transport through the Local Transport Plan process, Hampshire County Council with Winchester City Council and East Hampshire District Council has developed a comprehensive set of proposals for the rural Central Hampshire area. The vision statement for the Central Hampshire Rural Transport Strategy (CHARTS) is to achieve a more sustainable approach to transport provision, supporting prosperity and local distinctiveness by working in partnership to find local solutions that:
· enhance the environment
· integrate land use and transport planning; and
· improve travel choice and reduce social exclusion.
As you are aware, the development of the Strategy involved widespread consultation with the local community, and identified the importance of transport solutions which benefit the economy and the environment, and improve accessibility and safety. In order to address these issues, proposals have been developed within CHARTS. The CHARTS Strategy includes route strategy studies, one of which is for the B2177.
THE B2177 CORRIDOR FROM WICKHAM TO TWYFORD
Traffic flows have been growing steadily on this corridor since 1992 at a rate of 0.7% per annum, with annual growth in peak traffic of close to 1.5%. Through traffic is also a concern on this corridor, particularly with respect to goods vehicles and that through traffic tends to travel faster. Surveys have indicated however that there is no evidence of significant levels of through traffic by goods vehicles.
Accident information along the corridor has been collated and summarised as 106 personal injury accidents between 1997 and 2000 with the majority of these being slight accidents. The County Council is looking at specific improvements at high risk locations. The bus route 69 is the main service linking the settlements along the corridor, but there are less good links to the rail network between Winchester and Fareham. There are limited facilities for cycling in and around the corridor - leisure and recreation cycling currently features in the Meon Valley at the disused rail line at Wickham, but facilities for utility cycling are limited.
THE VISION FOR THE B2177
The overall strategy for the B2177 is to develop a series of proposals which discourage long distance through traffic, minimise accidents, develop public transport services and provide a local cycle network.
OBJECTIVES
The policies for the CHARTS area have been modified to enable a hierarchy of objectives, policies and proposals to be established for the corridor. The general policies for the corridor are:-
OBJECTIVE 1: IMPROVE TRANSPORT SAFTETY
This would be achieved by introducing highway improvements at known accident spots, and also by reviewing speed limits and enforcing those limits. Personal safety would be improved through improved lighting and security through means such as CCTV.
OBJECTIVE 2: REDUCE THE ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS OF TRANSPORT AND DISCOURAGE THROUGH TRAFFIC
This relates particularly to reducing the visual and noise effects of traffic and lessening the impact that roads can have in terms of splitting communities into two parts which affects all the villages to some degree. The effects of this community severance could be offset by introducing traffic calming measures to reduce the speed of traffic.
OBJECTIVE 3: ENCOURAGE THE USE OF AND IMPROVE PUBLIC TRANSPORT
Develop improved frequency, quality and awareness of bus services by developing Quality Partnerships with bus operators. Opportunities for providing bus priority and improved bus infrastructure will also be investigated. In parallel, opportunities for improvements to rail services and rail infrastructure would also be sought, as well as better integration between the bus and rail network.
OBJECTIVE 4: ENCOURAGE CYCLING AND WALKING
It is proposed to investigate the provision of a continuous pedestrian and cycle link between Winchester, Twyford, Colden Common, Bishops Waltham and Wickham. Existing cycle and pedestrian routes will also be developed by improving routes to local facilities, together with better signing and lighting.
OBJECTIVE 5: RAISE PUBLIC AWARENESS OF TRANSPORT ISSUES
Efforts will be made to improve public awareness of transport issues through the County Council travel awareness campaign, Headstart and through the production of a travel guide for all modes of transport along the corridor. Partnership working will be developed with schools along the route to encourage the development of School Travel plans.
OBJECTIVE 6: REDUCE THE NEED TO TRAVEL
This will be achieved with the district council through designing and locating development in locations which reduce the need to travel, and also by encouraging working patterns which reduce car travel
OBJECTIVE 7: REINFORCE THE ECONOMY OF THE AREA
This will be achieved by reviewing the parking supply and charges, and reviewing signage along the corridor.
OBJECTIVE 8: IMPROVE AND ENSURE ACCESS TO ALL
All proposals for the route will take into account the needs of the impaired and disabled. There will be support and promotion of community transport provision.
OBJECTIVE 9: ENCOURAGE CHOICE AND ALTERNATIVE MODES TO REDUCE PRIVATE CAR USEAGE
Greater priority to buses, cycles and pedestrians through cycle and pedestrian schemes and exploring the potential for bus priority.
APPROACH FOR THE CORRIDOR
In order to maximise the opportunity of achieving the objectives, a consistent approach is proposed along the whole corridor. A series of local proposals will be put forward in order to:-
· discourage long distance through traffic
· minimise accidents
· develop public transport services
· provide a local network of cycle ways
For those local proposals, the route has been divided into 6 sections. The detail of these will depend on the local community involvement and consultations, but the outline concepts can be summarised as follows:
WICKHAM
a) Introduce more traffic calming along the A334
b) Review speed limits and enforce these speed limits
c) Develop a cycle network within Wickham
d) Investigate improvements to public transport services as stated in the corridor strategy
e) Consider traffic control at the junction of the A334 and the Square
WALTHAM CHASE
a) Introduce traffic calming through Shedfield and Waltham Chase
b) Review speed limits
c) Implement a cycle network within and through the villages
d) Investigate improvements to public transport provision as stated in the Corridor Strategy
BISHOPS WALTHAM
a) Introduce a traffic calming scheme along Winchester Road through the Newtown area of Bishops Waltham
b) Review speed limits on the B2177 through Bishops Waltham and introduce measures to enforce those speed limits
c) Introduce a cycle network within and through Bishops Waltham
d) Investigate improvements to public transport provision and links to the rail network particularly Botley railway station
B2177 NORTH OF BISHOPS WALTHAM TO FISHERS POND
a) At accident locations introduce highway improvements
b) Enforce speed limits particularly through Lower Upham
c) Investigate improvements to the junction of B2177 with the access road to Marwell Zoo
d) Investigate a cycle route along the B2177
e) Investigate improvements to public transport provision particularly links to Hedge End and/or Eastleigh railway stations
COLDEN COMMON: B3354 FROM FISHERS POND TO B3335
a) Introduce a traffic calming scheme through Colden Common
b) Improve the B2177/B3354 Fishers Pond junction with the introduction of traffic signals or a roundabout (options being developed)
c) Review speed limits and introduce measures to enforce these speed limits
d) Investigate a cycle route along the B2177 and a cycle network within the Colden Common area
e) Investigate improvements to public transport links particularly to Eastleigh railway station
TWYFORD: B3335 (this has already been consulted upon separately)
a) Introduce a traffic calming scheme through Twyford
b) Introduce measures to enforce the 30mph speed limit in Twyford
c) Implement a cycle route along the B3335, and a cycle network within Twyford
d) Investigate improvements to public transport provision along the route, and in particular to local rail stations.
Your views on the policy objectives and strategy concepts described above will be compiled and reported to the Central Hampshire Area Transport Strategy Members Panel. In order to tell us your views, please fill in the questionnaire enclosed with this consultation document, and return to us in the reply paid envelope provided. The results of the consultation will be analysed and reported to the CHARTS panel. Subject to the necessary funding being available, preliminary designs for each of the villages will be drawn up these will be the subject of comprehensive public consultation at the appropriate time.
I/steve/B2177 route corridor improvements 27/07/01
APPENDIX 2
CENTRAL HAMPSHIRE RURAL TRANSPORT STRATEGY
B2177 ROUTE CORRIDOR STRATEGY
Thank you for reading the consultation document on the concepts outlined for this corridor. We would be grateful if you could answer the following questions about the proposals. Your views will help Hampshire County Council and Winchester City Council develop the route strategy further to a point where preliminary feasibility design can be undertaken to provide a solution which meets the needs of local people and the wider community. If you have further comments or suggestions, please add details in the space provided for comments at the end of the questionnaire.
Please consider the following issues and tick the box which most closely matches your view.
Overall Strategy | |||||||||||||||||
Strongly agree |
Slightly agree |
Neutral |
Slightly disagree |
Strongly Disagree | |||||||||||||
1 |
What do you think of the overall strategy for the corridor, as outlined in The Vision for the B2177? |
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2 |
Do you agree with the overall Objectives of the Strategy? |
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3 |
Of these objectives, which do you consider to be the most important? Please rank the top 3 by indicating 1, 2 and 3 in the appropriate boxes. | ||||||||||||||||
Improve transport safety |
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Reduce the environmental effects of traffic and discourage through traffic |
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Encourage the use of and improve public transport |
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Raise public awareness of transport issues |
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Reducing the need to travel |
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Reinforce the economy of the area |
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Improve and ensure access for all |
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Encourage choice and alternative modes to reduce private car usage |
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Local Area Concepts |
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Below is a summary of the concepts for each of the villages along the route of the corridor. Please indicate to what extent you agree with each of them. You may indicate your level of agreement with concepts outside your village. For any you strongly disagree with, please indicate why. |
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Strongly agree |
Slightly agree |
Neutral |
Slightly disagree |
Strongly Disagree | |||||||||||||
1 |
Wickham |
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More traffic calming along A334 |
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Review and enforce speed limits |
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Investigate cycle network |
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Improve public transport services |
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Traffic control at A334/The Square |
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Safety treatments at A334/Titchfield Lane |
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2 |
Waltham Chase | ||||||||||||||||
Traffic calming through Shedfield |
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Reduce and enforce speed limits |
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Investigate cycle network |
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Improve public transport services |
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Safety treatment at B2177/A334 |
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3 |
Bishops Waltham | ||||||||||||||||
Traffic calming along Winchester Road through Newtown |
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Review and enforce speed limits |
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Investigate cycle network |
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Improve public transport provision |
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Please provide your name and the name of the parish that you are representing. | ||
____________________________________________________________________________ | ||
WHERE NEXT? | ||
Comments from this consultation will be reported to the Central Hampshire Rural Transport Strategy Members Panel and will be used to influence the next stage of feasibility design for the schemes. | ||
If you have any further comments, please contact: | ||
The County Surveyor Hampshire County Council The Castle Winchester Hampshire SO23 8UD | ||
Tel: Fax: E-mail: |
01962 845028 01962 845190 | |
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