Archived decisions

Contact: Geoff Topps, ext 7959

1. Summary

1.1 This report provides Members with an update on the progress of this element of the South Hampshire Rapid Transit (SHRT) network.

2. Background

2.1 The A3 Bus Priority Corridor is the second major phase of the SHRT network that will provide improved north/south public transport facilities between the centres of Portsmouth, Waterlooville and Horndean and the settlements between.

3. Steering Group

3.1 Representatives from Hampshire County Council, Portsmouth City Council, Havant Borough Council, East Hampshire District Council, Hampshire Constabulary and First, the main bus operator along the corridor, met to discuss and agree the principles to be adopted for the route. Now that most of these have been finalised the meeting frequency will change from every two months to every three, if necessary supplemented by working groups to develop complex issues such as Quality Partnerships and raising public awareness.

4. Quality Bus Partnership

4.1 Preliminary details for a Quality Bus Partnership for the A3 corridor have been developed by Hampshire County Council, Portsmouth City Council, Havant Borough Council and First. Further meetings have been arranged to see if and how these can be expanded to include the Police as a part of the formal partnership arrangements.

5. Progress and Programme

General

5.1 Dyer and Butler has been appointed as the contractor for the highway works to be carried out by the County Council. Tenders were very competitive for this long term project and they were judged on quality as well as price. A term contract has been created for the highway construction similar to that already used for highway maintenance, which will provide financial savings due to economies of scale and saved tendering fees, and allow improved partnership working and stability through the duration of the project.

5.2 The contractor is now preparing to start on-site and anticipates this will begin in April (after Easter). Although this represents a delay to the original programme estimate, the County Council will be working with the contractor to ensure that this has no significant effect on the overall five year programme. A newsletter is being prepared for local residents to inform them of who will be working on site and how to contact them, and this will be issued in March before construction starts.

Section 1 Widley to Purbrook

5.3 Design details are being finalised to include additional works across the top of Portsdown Hill as part of this section. The necessary Traffic Regulation Orders have been approved by Portsmouth City Council to convert a lane of each of the existing dual carriageways there to a bus lane to complement the work already prepared on the north side of the hill. While it is planned to keep two-way traffic flowing along this busy route, during the roadworks temporary traffic signals will cause some delays, so an alternative route will be signposted. A full-scale diversion is not considered appropriate since the route would become congested and local traders are concerned about the loss of passing trade.

Section 2 Purbrook Village

5.4 The public exhibition and follow-on consultation with local residents and businesses has helped shaped the preliminary proposals so that the final detailed design can be started. The on-road parking has been retained with consideration given to loading requirements, the bus shelters repositioned adjacent to Stakes Road (closer to the existing locations) and discussions are being held with Gales Breweries to see if a better pedestrian route can be provided to the rear public car park.

5.5 Traffic Regulation Orders for the new parking, etc will be advertised in the spring and a Project Appraisal submitted for approval in the summer. This will then form part of the second phase of construction which is estimated to start at the end of 2002.

Section 3 Purbrook to Waterlooville

5.6 The detailed design of this section is approaching completion. Discussions are underway with Southwick Estates, which has agreed to consider the dedication of three narrow strips of land on the west of the route to facilitate a continuous north-bound bus lane. Final details for the proposed south bound bus gate at the north end of Purbrook have been prepared and discussed further with frontagers. Despite explanations and amendments to the design where possible, residents are still not in favour of this facility being built outside their properties and have safety concerns. While the bus gate would be very beneficial and the fears over safety are not shared, it will be decided whether to adopt this measure at the Project Appraisal stage.

5.7 Traffic Regulation Orders for this stretch of the route will be advertised in March 2002 and the results included in the Project Appraisal which is planned for July 2002. This will be combined with Section 2 to form the second phase of construction which is estimated to commence by the end of 2002.

Section 4 Waterlooville Town Centre

5.8 The public exhibition of the preliminary proposals for the Waterlooville section of the route has been scheduled for 11 to 13 April. It will be held in the Curzon Rooms, which are central to the town centre, and the event will include preliminary details of the Urban Design Framework, a study to develop some long term aspirations for the town centre.

5.9 The development of Swiss Road as the new bus through route and interchange area is key to the town centre proposals and the associated pedestrian extension into London Road south. It is important that these find favour with the bus operators since an objection could lead to a public inquiry and the risk of Swiss Road not being supported. This would be expensive, greatly delay the programme and potentially could jeopardise the pedestrian zone extension. Therefore every effort is being made to produce a design that the bus operators support.

5.10 After previous acceptance of the Swiss Road principles, ASDA has now expressed concern about the resulting loss of parking in Swiss Road, which it now considers a most useful/valuable parking area. Without ASDA's cooperation it will prove too costly and time consuming to complete Swiss Road to the project programme. Further work is underway to clarify ASDA's formal position.

5.11 Conversely, ASDA has proved to be very broad-minded when considering the shortcomings of its store, in light of the town centre Urban Design Framework studies and the west of Waterlooville major development area. The company has readily considered a wide range of options and suggested that Swiss Road is not started until the intentions become clear and the two can then be designed to complement each other. Again this would not fit with the current project programme for the A3.

5.12 As a useful compromise, ASDA suggested that to avoid these immediate problems it might be advisable to build the pedestrian extension now but include temporary bus access between Hambledon Road and Stakes Hill Road. This could then be removed when greater time and consideration had been spent in resolving the whole Swiss Road/ASDA site issue. With the potential for either the bus operators or ASDA to jeopardise the Swiss Road route this may well become a matter that Members will have to consider if they still want the pedestrian zone extension to be completed in the near future. Discussions and negotiations will continue in an attempt to resolve these matters and avoid such a choice, but in case it becomes inevitable the April public exhibition will include an opportunity for people to comment on temporary bus use of part of the pedestrian zone so that a more informed decision can be made.

5.13 Discussions have been held with the Police, which owns the empty Post Office on the corner of Swiss Road and Hambledon Road. While the A3 corridor concepts and the dedication of a small strip of land to allow buses to pass each other turning through the junction are supported by the Police, being financially disadvantaged is not acceptable. Given that there are four years of revenue to collect from the lease of the property to the Post Office, followed by demolition and construction costs for an extra car park, it seems unlikely that this can be resolved without excessive cost. Signals will be used to control traffic around the junction if the matter cannot be resolved.

North of Waterlooville

5.14 No further work has been carried out north of Waterlooville, although there has been a noticeable increase in interest from residents and businesses as to what is proposed and when it will take place. The public exhibition for Section 5, Waterlooville to Cowplain, is not scheduled until May 2003. If it proves difficult to resolve matters in Waterlooville town centre then it will be necessary to bring the exhibition forward a year. This will enable Section 5 to be prepared and ready for construction in place of Waterlooville, since it will be necessary to have a new section of the route ready for the contractor to work on in the latter half of 2003.

6. Portsmouth City Council

6.1 Portsmouth City Council has now confirmed proposals for bus lanes between Old London Road and Doyle Avenue. These will particularly assist buses at peak periods but will also be a `gateway' statement on the approach to what is at present the most congested part of the route, through North End and Kingston Road. These works are likely to be completed before the summer.

6.2 The consultation on this phase has identified a willingness of local traders to consider, with the County Council, proposals for a further phase between Doyle Avenue and Torrington Road. It is anticipated that this will enable a scheme to be designed that not only benefits bus operators and users but also rationalises parking, servicing and pedestrian crossing facilities. Progress on this phase will be reported at a future meeting.

6.3 Progress on improvements at Cosham Interchange, a key location with immediate access to Cosham Station and the local shopping centre, has been delayed due to problems in finding an acceptable relocation site for the present bus shelter, a listed building. Negotiations for it to be relocated to a prestigious site within the city are taking place and the indications are very positive. Provided that these arrangements are successful, design of the new Interchange and improved links to the north-bound bus stops will be finalised, with a view to the shelter being moved and works completed this financial year.

6.4 In the city centre works to carry out bus priority and environmental improvements in front and to the south of the main railway station are expected to commence in late spring, with completion early in 2003.

Recommendation

That progress on the elements of this transportation network be noted.

7037/GST