Agenda item

Report of the Director of Environment and Resident Experience.  To be introduced by the Cabinet Member for Climate Action, Environment and Transport, and Deputy Leader of the Council.

Determine whether 6 new School Streets should be implemented, deferred or not proceed. Six new School Streets were implemented in March 2022 in 3 Phase One LTN areas. These are trial schemes under experimental traffic orders (ETMO). The report informs of the monitoring and consultation feedback after 1 year. The report makes recommendations for the confirmation of the School Streets by the making of permanent traffic orders where appropriate.

Appendices are attached in a separate pack.

Councillor das Neves and Councillor Williams returned to the meeting at this point.

The Cabinet Member for Climate Action, Environment and Transport, and Deputy Leader of the Council, introduced the report which reported on the impact of six School Streets within the three Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, and sought approval to make permanent all Experimental Traffic Orders associated with the six School Streets.

Councillor Brabazon added that she was pleased to see the reference to Jane Jacobs in the report, and added that if children were getting a safer journey to school, there was nothing to dislike about School Streets.

In response to Councillor das Neves, it was noted that the schools were fully in support of the proposals.  School drop offs and pick ups were much better than before, and both parents and teachers were happy with the implementation of School Streets.

In response to questions from Councillor da Costa , the following was noted:

-               The air quality data for Seven Sisters school had been normalised in relation to other baseline data used for air quality.

RESOLVED to

1.            Note the outcome of the trial of six School Streets, as detailed in the Monitoring Report (Appendix A).

2.            Consider the objections made in respect of each School Street (Appendix B) and officer responses to the objections raised (Appendix C).

3.            Approve the making permanent of all ETOs associated with all six School Streets show in the plans (Appendix A3), subject to the outcome of any statutory traffic order procedure.

Reasons for decision

School Streets are a key priority for the Council, as set out within the School Street Plan^[1], the Walking and Cycling Action Plan^[2] and the Corporate Delivery Plan 2022-2024^[3]. 

The reasons for recommendation 3.3 are based upon the evidence collected during the ETO period and the positive benefits that the School Streets have delivered, as discussed in Section 7.

Alternative options considered

Do nothing - i.e. to let the experimental traffic orders lapse.

The Council would therefore fail to deliver on the motion passed by Full Council in March 2019, which set out a commitment to deliver School Streets at primary schools across the borough.

Failure to retain these School Streets would be contrary to the objectives set out in the Transport Strategy, the Climate Change Action Plan and the Walking and Cycling Action Plan.

Extend the length of the experimental period before a decision is made.

This option was rejected because, if time runs out on the ETO, the default position is that the order lapses and is no longer enforceable. Alongside this, there is evidence from other School Streets projects that little would change or be gained within an extra 6-month time period (where possible).