Agenda item

Report of the Director of the Built Environment.

The Committee considered a report of the Director of the Built Environment in respect of the Transportation response to support Covid-19 recovery (Phase 3): City Streets.

A Member congratulated Officers on their rapid progress, creativity and agility in this area and questioned whether if, as anticipated, social distancing guidelines were to be imminently amended from 2m to 1m, what changes, if any, would be made to existing Phase 1 works and whether this would also have implications for phases 2 and 3. He went on to note that this report made no mention of Guildhall Yard which was a substantial space with small permanent and temporary seating provisions available and questioned whether this was therefore an oversight. The Chair reported that the Prime Minister had just announced that social distancing was to be reduced from 2m to 1m as of 4 July 2020. Officers highlighted that this was the change that all had anticipated. In terms of Phase 1 works, Officers were moving towards changing the initial, coned areas established to more semi-permanent measures which could still be easily removed if required. This would also offer the opportunity to revise or tweak these in accordance with today’s announcement. Similarly, as Phase 2 works began to be rolled out, these could be assessed as they progressed. Officers clarified that they did not, however, think that this change in social distancing would make a significant difference to plans for Phases 1 and 2. Even on streets with wider pavements such as Cheapside, additional space would be needed to accommodate queuing outside premises as well as space for pedestrians to pass by at a safe distance. In terms of Phase 3 proposals, adequate space and seating would still need to be identified to help support food and drinks retailers regardless of any relaxations. With regards to Guildhall Yard, Officers were aware of the need to look at this site but this would not be an on-street change and was not therefore covered by these proposals. However, the City Corporation would be looking internally at opportunities to increase the use of this space.

Another Member questioned what the current pedestrian utilisation of streets under consideration was and what that use was in normal times. He went on to note that the City had recently put out a statement saying that only one in twenty five people who normally use the City were travelling in at present under current social distancing and other measures introduced on public transport. There was no evidence yet that walking and cycling had in any way displaced that form of commuting into the City. He went on to ask what increases were expected if there was to be a change in social distancing rules which was obviously now highly relevant and, given the answers to these questions, he asked whether there was any reasonable prospect of any of the City’s current streetscape being insufficiently wide to provide safe access for expected levels of utilisation. Finally, he noted that the Retail Alliance had made it very clear that the change in social distancing measures would mean utilisation rates would increase to approximately 70% in retail spaces. He could not therefore imagine that this change in policy would not be extremely helpful and reduce the need to introduce extensive measures. Officers reported that they did not collect live data on utilisation at present but that they were actively looking at other data sources to gain an understanding of what was happening in the City. It was, however, safe to say that numbers were well below what they would usually be. For example, the number of people entering and exiting underground stations last week was just 7.6% of the comparable date in 2019. These figures were increasing on a weekly basis albeit quite gradually at the moment. Officers went on to state that it was difficult to predict how the City would fare and how people would start to return although conversations that the City Corporation had been having with City businesses suggest that at least a quarter of the City’s workforce would have returned to the City by the Autumn (approximately 125,000 people). In terms of the impact of the relaxation of social distancing requirements, this may well reduce the need for queuing outside of premises and the space required for this but it was expected that it would also accelerate the rate at which people would return to the City, not least because it will also increase capacity on public transport, which was currently one of the biggest obstacles in terms of people returning to the workplace. With regard to whether pavements in the City were sufficiently wide, Officers reported that there were many streets in the City (many of which were included within Phase 1 and Phase 2 proposals) where pavements are less than 3m, and in some cases 2m wide so the need to reallocate space was still there although this would be kept under review as the works were rolled out with each Phase intended to be both flexible and adaptable with the ability to scale up or down as necessary.

The Member responded to reluctantly speak against these proposals adding that, in the long-term, he would like to see more pedestrianisation and a greater use of green spaces in the City but he did not agree with the fact that these works were being seemingly rushed through under what amounted to emergency powers without much scrutiny beyond that provided by Officers and without consulting residents. The reasons set out within the report as to why these interventions were essential was not an evidence based case and there was no evidence at all that this was needed in order to make the City safe for people to return in the context of social distancing and COVID-19. What was clear, three months into lockdown, was that the principal barrier to people returning is public transport. Again, there was no evidence that people would opt for walking or cycling into work in place of this and this was certainly not what had occurred to date. People were opting, instead, to stay home. He asked that Officers therefore rethink this approach, particularly the need for consultation, to ensure that these changes, whether temporary or not, did not create unintended consequences or cause harm. Specifically, about 30-40% of the real economy was currently shut down, which would cause devastating damage over the next year with many businesses and therefore the servicing of those businesses not returning, the last thing those businesses therefore needed were road closures which they had not been properly consulted on. He concluded by stating that he remained unassured that this had been taken seriously and, on that basis, would oppose the recommendations. Officers spoke to clarify both the pace that these works were moving at and the approach to engagement/consultation. It was highlighted that it was made clear from the outset that these works were moving quickly and that this was in response to the need to provide safe space and social distancing. The challenge here was how much of this should be provided in anticipation of a possible return to the City and how much should be reactive to a situation. At present, works were very much preparatory to ensure that people were confident that they would have safe space on their return. Officers added that it was fair to say that in discussions that had been had with businesses to date, they were largely supportive of the overall approach, albeit with potential concerns around particular changes on particular streets.  With regard to wider consultation, Officers reported that the online portal to gather public feedback would be launched imminently and promoted to local businesses and residents. This feedback would, if necessary, translate to changes on the streets – indeed this had already happened in some Phase 1 locations in response to feedback from businesses and construction sites on affected streets. The Chair added that, from his perspective, the City Corporation could not be distracted by the fact that National Rail Services and other routes into the City were not currently ideal. Statistics showed that approximately 140,000 people live close enough to use active travel to get into the City and, as was well known, the majority of those without access needs would use walking and cycling to reach their eventual destination. The major public policy issue at present was perceptions of safety and the City Corporation had a statutory duty imposed by the DfT that we create this safe space. The messaging around this therefore needed to be very strong that the City is open for business and that as many people as needed to return would be able to do so as soon as Government guidance changes. This was fundamentally about increasing public space, something which had been identified pre-COVID as part of the Transport Strategy. The Chair stressed that work on this should not be deflected by the fact that the evidence was not yet available in relation to this as this would come in time. As Officers had clarified, the City Corporation was not afraid to have to change and adapt these measures where necessary and  the Chair highlighted that this had been the way in which transport changes in the City had recently been successfully introduced – via experimental schemes that were subsequently tweaked and adapted as required.

A Member commented that the report seemed to indicate that Phase 1 works on Cannon Street were complete but the signage here did not seem to be finished and it was not clear that what had been installed was a two way cycle path with some interpreting this as one lane for cycling and one for pedestrians. He also questioned whether there was any way that Officers could ensure that any newly installed planters were not used by smokers for the disposal of cigarettes as was the case elsewhere in the City. Officers clarified that they could look again at signage on Cannon Street but clarified that was installed this was intended to be a cycle contraflow with a one-way cycle route and the extra space there provided for footway widening. In terms of cigarette disposal, Officers were working with colleagues in Open Spaces to look at how they should design and plant planters so this could be factored in to the design process. Officers were also working alongside colleagues in Cleansing on the layout of all of these schemes to understand how they would impact on cleansing regimes and this point could also be explored further with them.

Another Member stated that she was very interested in the City Corporation’s role in helping to get retail and hospitality open again and very much welcomed the news today around the relaxation of social distancing measures. She questioned whether Officers could use connections with the City network of HR professionals to build forecasts of how and when staff would return to work. It was felt that this would be extremely helpful to businesses planning for when large scale numbers would return to the City. Officers thanked the Member for a helpful suggestion. They reported that they had been working with Officers in Innovation and Growth to try and understand what a return to work would look like but would discuss with them the possibility of reaching out to HR networks in the City on this point.

A Member commented that she was pleased to hear that some carparking spaces would be repurposed for cycle parking spaces and questioned whether she could also urge that the existing cycle spaces that were situated on pavements were also similarly relocated. She went on to comment on space outside of tube stations and asked whether this had been looked at across the City. At some locations, such as Bank, pavements had been widened but places like Barbican with just one exit, a pedestrian crossing and a bus stop could mean that the arrival of even a half empty tube would lead to pedestrian congestion here. Officers reported that they would keep the location of current dockless cycle bays under review both longer-term and as part of these immediate measures to aid the City’s recovery. At the moment proposals were to create additional bays in addition to those already in existence. In terms of tube entrances and exits, Officers reported that whilst this was the third phase of these proposed works it was possibly not the final phase and some future proposals would need to drill down into specific locations and look at providing smaller pockets of additional space where this was needed. Members were informed that the Barbican had been flagged in discussions as being one such area already. 

Another Member spoke further on the importance of a well-informed, data driven base of information and highlighted that the Commissioner had quoted some comprehensive statistics based on a broad engagement with City businesses on the numbers of people that they were expecting to return to the workplace at a meeting of the Police Authority Board yesterday. He questioned whether Officers could confirm that this data was coming from the Police on a regular basis and avoid any duplication of efforts in terms of approaching businesses. Officers confirmed that Innovation and Growth and CPAT colleagues were leading in terms of engagement with businesses and undertook to look into whether this data was also being shared with the Police or vice versa. They commented that data gathered to date was beginning to provide a good picture of what a return to work would look like by the Autumn.

A Member commented that, whilst she realised that this was a dynamic situation, the point on consultation was a very important one. The lessening of social distancing requirements and announcements around the reopening of pubs and restaurants from 4 July 2020 would also bring up once more the question of outside space requirements. Pubs with off-sales and punters drinking outside needed to be allocated sufficient space whilst still ensuring that pavements were accessible (particularly for those with disabilities) and everything possible needed to done to assist these businesses in reopening and thriving. For this reason, the Member asked that Officers look at the matter more holistically and plan quickly and accordingly for a return to normal.

A Member stressed that, whilst work was being undertaken to facilitate safe movement around the City, spaces also needed to be actively and flexibly created to assist with and support the reopening of businesses.

RESOLVED – That :

1.    The budget for Phase 3 be approved in principle, at a maximum of £650,500, subject to the confirmation of funding at Gateway 5.

2.    The overall forecast project budget for all three phases of £1,699,244 (excluding risk) be noted.

3.    The proposal for a review report on all measures be submitted to committee after six months of the first measures being implemented (in December 2020), as set out in paragraphs 18-19 of the report.

4.    Up to 1,900 new cycle parking locations, at a maximum cost of £82,000, be approved in principle, split by:

a.    A maximum of 50 car parking spaces within the City’s five car parks being reallocated to provide up to 500 cycle parking spaces, as set out in paragraphs 48-49 of the report.

b.    A maximum of 81 on street parking bays/motorcycle bays to be reallocated to temporary cycle parking and/or seating as part of Phase 3, as set out in paragraphs 50-55 of the report. NB: This equates to a maximum 13% reduction in on-street parking bays to provide up to 650 cycle spaces.

c.    The reallocation of other carriageway and possibly footway space to provide up to a further 650 spaces, and potentially up to 100 spaces on private but publicly accessible land, subject to necessary legal agreements and consents being obtained.

5.    The 12 seating/greening locations listed in table 2 in section 12 of the report and the proposed interventions be approved, the indicative total cost of £480,500 to deliver all of the interventions be noted and; it be noted that if full funding is not available to deliver all locations, they will be prioritised in the order shown in the report.

6.    The implications of approving recommendations 4 and 5 above be agreed; ie - that this may result in the possible reduction of up to £336K of parking income being transferred to the Parking Reserve Account (if the temporary measures are in place for six months).

7.    The procurement route to purchase the infrastructure to enable seating, greening and activation via the City Corporation’s Highways Term Contract be approved, accepting an additional mark-up 8-10% on the total cost, as set out in  paragraph 86 of the report.

8.    The proposal to introduce a “school street”, which involves closing the street outside Charterhouse Square School during the school starting and finishing

times, using an Experimental Traffic Order be approved and, if successful, this be made permanent.

9.    Approval for design, for making of Orders and Notices and related procedures and for implementation and operation for Phase 3 be delegated to the

Director of the Built Environment, in consultation with the Chair and Deputy Chairman of Planning & Transportation Committee and the Chairman and

Deputy Chairman of the Streets & Walkways Sub Committee, subject to the receipt of funding.