Archived decisions

Contact: Geoff Topps, ext 7959 email: [email protected]

1. Summary

1.1 This report provides a progress update on transport schemes within the 2005/06 Capital Programme together with schemes for the 2006/07 Capital Programme that were approved by the Executive Member for Environment: South Hampshire and Resource Management on 21 March 2006. A summary of schemes is shown at Appendix 1.

1.2 The table below shows the county-wide improvement programmes for 2006/07 and where applicable to the Havant area, the report items are given for reference.

1.3 Schemes in the Capital Programme are financed from the Local Transport Plan (LTP) and/or external funding (EF) received from developers or other contributors.

2. Capital Schemes 2004/05

Havant Bus Station £1,770,000 LTP, £80,000 Havant Borough Council contribution

2.1 Funding approval for the new £1.85 million bus station for Havant was granted in April 2005. The previous bus passenger facilities at this major bus route interchange for the town centre were little more than a collection of bus shelters. These are being replaced with a high quality, purpose built bus station that will provide a vastly superior waiting facility for passengers including a large enclosed waiting area with seating, bus display information systems and CCTV security surveillance. In addition there will be a two-storey building offering public toilets, a counter service for public information and welfare facilities for bus drivers.

2.2 Constructing the building has been the first phase of the works, which has gone as planned, and is within the original budget forecasts. It was originally intended that a separate contract would be used for the final phase of works but this can now be undertaken as part of the existing contract. As a result any potential site problems with two contractors having overlapping responsibilities has been avoided and, subject to the contractor producing a revised programme, it is now expected that the main construction will be finished in July 2006, earlier than anticipated.

3. Capital Schemes 2005/06

Havant Route 21 and 23 Quality Bus Partnership £100,000 LTP

3.1 Sixteen new or replacement shelters are due to be installed starting mid April 2006 of which two will have solar powered lighting. Provision has been made for eight to be equipped with Real Time Passenger Information displays.

3.2 Following a period during 2005 when the frequency on service 21 (linking Havant, West Leigh and Farlington with Portsmouth City Centre) was increased from every 15 minutes to every 10 minutes, in October 2005 the frequency reverted to every 15 minutes to allow extra running time during the rebuilding works at Copnor railway bridge. These works are now complete and buses reverted to the normal route from 12 March 2006, at present the 15 minute frequency is being retained. Despite this the service continues to run at a higher frequency than applied until May 2004, when a 20 minute headway was provided. It remains the goal of the County Council and the bus operator to reinstate the 10 minute frequency, though a date for this is yet to be confirmed.

Hayling Billy, Havant Railway Station Cycleway Phase 2 £287,000 LTP, £24,000 EF

3.3 This is a significant element of the Havant Cycle Plan that will extend the provision of the walking and cycling link through the station car park and provide a large new covered cycle parking area. It requires alterations to part of the station which would require significant and complex consents and permissions to do so. As a scheme stakeholder South West Trains, the train operating company, has agreed to undertake the design and construction to help streamline the process. A Grant Agreement has been entered into for this undertaking.

3.4 Construction work was expected to start in February 2006 but Network Rail require an Outside Party Agreement because the works affect the platform. Therefore the works are now expected to commence before the end of March for completion in July 2006. Part of the rear platform edge on the east side station car park will be trimmed back so that the layout of car parking bays can accommodate the new cycle shelter and contra-flow cycleway. It is the need for these platform changes that Network Rail have to be particular about. The shelter structure will cater for 115 cycles to serve the high cycle use and further encourage sustainable local travel to and from the station.

4. Capital Schemes 2006/07

Emsworth Town Centre Accessibility £250,000 LTP £2,300 EF

4.1 Pedestrian and cycle accessibility and associated features will be improved for local routes linking to the town centre. These are being identified through local stakeholder consultation and consideration of information from other recent improvement schemes. The new works will complement both previous schemes and new emerging projects such as Safer Routes to School. This will lead to a town centre that more fully caters for the accessibility requirements for all and which further encourages local sustainable travel within the community of Emsworth.

5. Major Transportation Scheme - The Integrated A3 Bus Priority Corridor £25,100,000 LTP, £300,000 Havant Borough Council Contribution

General Progress

5.1 This is the major public transportation project that is being delivered in partnership with Portsmouth City Council, Havant Borough Council, East Hampshire District Council, the Police and the bus operator First. It will create a corridor with high quality passenger facilities and improved service reliability and frequency that will integrate with other public transport services and allow bus travel to better compete with car travel.

5.2 Funding of £25.1 million has been secured from the Department of Transport for works on the Hampshire County Council half of the route. The project is being delivered as a series of five sections and the main works are programmed to be completed at the end of 2007/08. The financial monitoring summary for the overall project is shown in Appendix 2.

Section 1 Widley to Purbrook

5.3 The works here are complete except for the real-time passenger information screens in the bus shelters. These have been delayed while getting the Hampshire real time information system developed to be compatible with the existing Portsmouth City system; a tricky problem that must be solved completely so that the information screens can be operational immediately they are installed.

Section 2a and 2b Purbrook to Waterlooville

5.4 These sections are similar to Section 1. In July 2006 the traffic signal bus gate at the southbound entrance to Purbrook will have been operational for 18 months and preparations will begin shortly to review how it has performed and determine if any changes need to be considered.

5.5 CCTV cameras are now operational here and in Section 1, however a problem has been encountered with the in-shelter security help button. When the button is pressed the nearest CCTV camera still turns to look at the bus shelter occupants but the District Council cannot now provide the original proposal to also have a voice link to their CCTV control room. Nevertheless the district control room can still share the operation of the cameras along the route and monitor their images, so that any incidents can be observed, recorded and if necessary the Police alerted; the same way district cameras monitor other locations.

Section 3 Waterlooville Town Centre

5.6 The main town centre shopping area road works in London Road south, St Georges Walk and Stakes Hill Road are nearing completion and should be substantially finished before the end of June 2006. The contractor has used great care and consideration in carrying out these works in such a sensitive retail area. While there have inevitably been some complaints from a few traders with claims for loss of trade the effort put into promoting the use of the town centre during the works, maintaining access to shops and not working at key times has kept this to a minimum.

5.7 It is now becoming evident that the amount of consultation and careful design, combined with the use of quality materials and workmanship, will transform the weary old road-dominated character of this end of Waterlooville into a vibrant, pedestrian friendly shopping area with great bus services and facilities. This section of the route will be the pinnacle of achievement for A3 Corridor that will help associate the transportation scheme with improvement, quality and change for the better as the town centre is seen to grow in stature as a result of the improvements brought about by the project.

Sections 4 and 5 North of Waterlooville to Clanfield

5.8 The project appraisal for the final two sections of the route was approved by the Executive Member for Policy and Resources on 4 November 2005. The cost of the final proposals are within the budget and some of the last items of work such as the improvements in Cowplain have a degree of flexibility so that the final spend can be managed. Although there have been some unexpected issues to deal with on previous sections they have all been resolved through the design and construction process so that all sections so far have been completed within their allocations.

5.9 The advanced works for the drainage improvements have been continuing but recent trial excavations have discovered that a gas main between Waterlooville and Cowplain is 5 metres away from where the gas company advised. This position clashes with the new drainage and so to avoid the cost and delay of moving the gas main the design has been revised. This has also delayed site progress but much less and with far fewer costs than diverting the gas main. Traffic Regulation Orders for the proposed new bus lane, 30 mph speed limit and complementary waiting and loading restrictions were advertised in February with the intention of the main works starting at the end of March.

5.10 In order to achieve completion by the end of 2007/08, works have also started at the north end of Section 5. The combined bus priority and villages initiative works in the south part of Horndean village are underway as well as the advanced works for the new Causeway roundabout traffic signal junction. By making this junction signal operated bus delays at peak times will be reduced and maintained, but just as importantly it will be better able to manage the northbound morning and southbound evening rush hour traffic which already causes significant congestion. If the junction remained as a roundabout, worsening congestion from growing traffic volumes would require the roundabout to be changed within the next 10 years, so this early intervention makes it easier to build now and avoids finding scarce capital programme funds to pay for it. The new junction also improves safety, improves and increase the crossing facilities for pedestrians and cycles and includes traffic signals for Hazleton Way for safe and reliable access to this busy distributor road.

6. Impact Assessments

6.1 This report provides a position statement only on the progress of schemes in the Capital Programme, therefore an impact assessment in terms of the Race Relations (Amendment) Act has not been undertaken. Such assessments are carried out for each scheme to ensure the County Council's policies on equalities are not compromised.

Recommendation

That Members note the progress with the schemes in the Transport Capital Programme and support those approved for inclusion in the Capital Programme for 2006/07.

847/GT

APPENDIX 1

2005/06 CAPITAL PROGRAMME

2006/07 CAPITAL PROGRAMME