Questions submitted by members of the public in writing by noon on the previous working day (for a period up to 15 minutes).
Minutes:
Two questions about the improvement of the A27 were asked by Mr Roland Higgins and by Mr Christopher Page and answered by Mr Tony Dignum (Leader of the Council) as follows:-
Question by Mr Roland Higgins
Given that the various proposals for the A27 Chichester Bypass improvement excite differing reactions in people, depending on whether they live to the north or to the south of the city, what assurance can the Council give the public that their ultimate joint preference will be guided by the best interests of Chichester as a whole and not by what as individual Councillors they conceive to be their own local interest.
Answer by Mr Dignum
Thank you for the question. I
spoke on this matter at the last meeting and said; “I fully
expect the choice of option recommended by the district council, to
be made by the full council after a debate.” The question now
asks for reassurance as to the outcome of a process that has not
yet commenced with detail that is not yet available. The public
consultation exercise is not due to commence until this
spring.
Nevertheless, what I can say is that
in balancing the relevant considerations, no doubt Members of
Council will have regard to local, district and even wider issues
before coming to their own view. You may be reassured that the
purpose of local democracy is that all considerations are taken
into account and competing interests are balanced in order to
achieve the best interests of the district.
Question by Mr Christopher Page
Chichester does not have a by-pass: what we have is a road that takes all our through and local traffic. None of the southern options leaked by Spirit FM changes this. Could I ask that when the members are assessing the options for traffic improvements put forward by Highways England, they will have consulted at least some of those towns and cities that now do have a proper bypass, such as Weymouth, Abingdon, Winchester, Portsmouth, Newbury, and Brighton, and ask whether that any of them would revert to the traffic arrangements before the bypass was constructed?
Answer by Mr Dignum
The district council will be a
consultee on the options to be
presented by Highways England and will clearly need time to assess
the information that is presented. In the absence of such
information I would ask you to understand that it is not
appropriate for me to indicate what the district council, as
consultee, will or will not
do.
Your question suggests that options
for the improvement of the A27 can be compared to other towns
and cities where bypasses have been constructed. No doubt members
will be aware of some if not all of the examples quoted. Whilst
these historic cases may be of interest, I expect the options for
the A27 will be determined on their individual merits having regard
to all the relevant considerations. Of course the comparison you
suggest of reversion to pre-bypass conditions is not relevant
unless Highways England proposes a do nothing option, which seems
very unlikely.
A question about the A27 was asked by Cllr Mike Hall on behalf of Mr Nick Reynolds and answered by Mrs Taylor (Cabinet Member for Housing and Planning) as follows:-
Question by Mr Nick Reynolds
CDC are recommending that developer contributions are secured to mitigate the impact of new housebuilding on the existing A27 but acknowledge that this will not in any way improve the existing congestion on this road.
Do CDC consider that the funds from developers are realistically achievable in the knowledge that central government have made it known that such agreements can be renegotiated if the development proves to be non-viable?
Furthermore, what other funding contributions will CDC make to mitigate the current (and future) local traffic congestion on the A27 if Highways England fund only a Northern Bypass, or is this entirely the responsibility of WSCC?
Answer by Mrs Taylor
The Council can only seek developer contributions to mitigate the traffic impacts of new development and not to deal with existing congestion. That is a matter for Highways England.
Securing the funds from developers is realistically achievable. The evidence base for the Local Plan identified the need for improvements and the potential developers of the strategic sites have continued to promote their sites in the knowledge that contributions would be necessary and without objection. Furthermore, the evidence base also included a study that demonstrates the strategic sites are able to afford these contributions. If a developer were to be able to demonstrate that with the required financial contribution a development was unviable then the Council would need to come to a view on whether it was acceptable in principle for the development to go ahead or whether it should be refused due to an unacceptable highway impact – and clearly the view of Highways England would be important in this regard.
If Highways England decide to build a Northern Bypass then the existing road is likely to become the responsibility of West Sussex County Council. In such a scenario, the need for this council to make a financial contribution is not clear to me. It is likely that capacity would be released on the existing A27 making it less likely that mitigation would be required.