Agenda and minutes

28.1     Councillor Maynard approved as a correct record the mnutes of the meeting held on 14 September 2015.

29.1     Reports referred to in the minutes below are contained in the minute book.

Report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport 

30.1     The Lead Member considered a report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport. 

30.2     Councillor Andy Batsford of Hastings Borough Council, the Lead Petitioner, spoke in support of the petition. 

DECISIONS

30.3     RESOLVED to (1) Advise the petitioners that their request for the full resurfacing of the pavements in the Ashford Road area has been assessed by the local Highway Steward and maintenance engineers;

(2) Advise the petitioners that the condition of the pavements in Ashford Road does not warrant whole scale replacement at this time; and

(3) Reassure the petitioners that the area concerned will continue to be inspected by the local Highway Steward and that all defects will continue to be repaired in accordance with the existing County Council highway maintenance policy.

Reasons

30.4     The pavements were found to be in a serviceable condition by the Highway Steward and maintenance engineers and do not warrant whole scale replacement at this time.  The local Highway Steward will continue to monitor the condition of the pavements in Ashford Road, and any defects that meet with the County Council’s policy will be repaired. 

Report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport

31.1     The Lead Member considered a report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport.  It was clarified that the road lay within the Buxted Parish Council area. 

31.2     Mr Graham Midmer, the Lead Petitioner, spoke in support of the petition. 

DECISIONS

31.3     RESOLVED to advise the petitioners that (1) a 40mph speed limit on Coopers Green Road is not a priority for the County Council; and

(2) the C33 at Ringles Cross was approved at the Lead Member meeting on 14 September 2015 as a priority for a Local Safety Scheme in the 2015/16 financial year; the Road Safety Team is presently investigating a set of safety improvements to help make this part of Coopers Green Road safer.

Reasons

31.4     The C41 Coopers Green Road has a relatively good safety record and has not been identified as a priority for a lower speed limit.  There has been a number of injury crashes reported to Sussex Police on the C33 at Ringles Cross, and this has been identified as a priority for a Local Safety Scheme from capital funding.

31.5     The petitioners may wish to approach Buxted Parish Council with the support of the Local Member to establish whether they would support an application through the County Council’s Community Match Initiative. 

Report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport

32.1     The Lead Member considered a report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport.  The Lead Member congratulated the officers on the result of the negotiations.

DECISIONS

32.2     RESOLVED to advise the petitioners of the successful negotiations between Compass Travel and East Sussex County Council which have led to the restoration of an hourly daytime bus service in the Winterbourne area.

Reasons

32.3     The County Council and Compass Travel agreed to integrate the bus used on the County Council supported service 129 with the bus used on Compass Travel’s commercial services 127 and 128.  Through minor amendments to the routes of these services, this has provided significantly better utilisation of the two buses and drivers overall, thereby allowing more frequent services to be provided.  The feedback the bus company has received from service users since the changes in September has been positive.

32.4     Lewes Town Council is providing some funding support to Compass Travel, which has helped the bus operator in taking the decision to improve these services.  

Report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport

33.1     The Lead Member considered a report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport.

DECISIONS

33.2     RESOLVED to recommend the County Council to (1) reject the Notice of Motion from Councillor St Pierre because there is inconclusive evidence on the use of neonicotinoids to agree a Policy stance; and

(2) agree an amended Notice of Motion to read:

“The County Council recognises the divided opinion on the use of neonicotinoids. The County Council does not use neonicotinoids on its own land. Taking into account the precautionary approach in this case, the County Council will review, at the appropriate time, farm business tenancy agreements to ensure that no pesticides that are banned by either the UK Government or the European Commission are used on any part of the smallholding.”

Reasons

33.3     The importance of a healthy bee population for agriculture and the environment is recognised by the County Council. Evidence is divided on the use of neonicotinoids. However, they are not used on County Council land. Farm business tenancy agreements always contain a clause preventing the use of pesticides banned by the UK Government on any holding and changes could be introduced to ensure the same for pesticides banned by the European Commission.  

Report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport

34.1     The Lead Member considered a report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport.

DECISIONS

34.2     RESOLVED to approve the publication of the new Asset Management Policy and Strategy in line with Department for Transport funding requirements.

Reasons

34.3     The Department for Transport expects to see increased adoption of asset management principles by local highway authorities, and to that effect future funding will become dependent on demonstrating continuous improvement in this area.

34.4     The County Council has already adopted asset management principles which have produced a significant improvement in the way the county’s highway infrastructure is managed and investment decisions are made.

34.5     With the decreasing resources in the coming years, continuing to build on this work should be a priority if the County Council is able to achieve value for money during the life of the new highways maintenance contract, and therefore the maximum available resource available through the incentive grant.  Formal adoption of an Asset Management Policy and Strategy is a key milestone in this process.