Agenda item

Report by the Director of Communities, Economy and Transport

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

DECISIONS

15.2     The Lead Member RESOLVED to:

(1) note the previous development work that has been undertaken in developing the East Sussex school streets programme;

(2) note the results of the public consultation on the detailed design of the three school streets schemes for Southover CE Primary, Lewes; Langney Primary, Eastbourne and All Saints CE Primary, Sidley, Bexhill;

(3) agree the recommended measures for inclusion as part of Phase 1 of the School Streets Programme for the 3 School Streets schemes to be taken forward for construction this year; and

(4) agree that an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO) is advertised in relation to each of 3 School Streets schemes to seek a view on the proposed timings of the access restrictions.

REASONS

15.3     The introduction of school street schemes supports East Sussex County Council’s draft Local Transport Plan objectives by enabling safer and more accessible journeys to school, supporting healthier lifestyles and communities, and decarbonising travel thereby providing benefits which are twofold for the school and its wider community.

15.4     Following School Street schemes being trialled at 6 schools in 2021, 3 schools - Southover CE Primary, Lewes; Langney Primary, Eastbourne; and All Saints CE Primary, Sidley, Bexhill - were identified to be taken forward to co-design and deliver permanent schemes. In doing so, considerable engagement has been undertaken trialling this co-design approach with the 3 school communities and key local stakeholders through from the initial trial scheme to the development of the concept and detailed scheme designs. Following public consultation on the 3 school street schemes undertaken in May 2024, there is overall support for the package of phased measures proposed for each school.

15.5     Due to the planned delivery timescales and need for further buildability assessments of some of the proposed measures, the first phase of interventions at each school as set out in Appendix 5 of the report will be focussed on delivering the School Street access restrictions alongside some more minor access improvements within each School Street and their wider respective areas. Further work will be undertaken on developing the second phase of proposed measures for each school alongside exploring funding opportunities to enable their delivery.

15.6     In order to monitor the effectiveness of the proposed timed access restrictions, an ETRO will be published in relation to each of 3 school streets schemes which allow the County Council to seek views on the access restrictions whilst in situ. This will enable feedback to be received on the timed access restrictions for a period of up to 18 months with periodic opportunities, normally at 6-month intervals, to make changes to any restrictions. Up to but by the end of the 18-month ETRO period, the restrictions can be made permanent or can be withdrawn if appropriate.

15.7     In parallel, the County Council will continue to liaise with other local authorities delivering similar schemes to seek and share learning through the Sustrans South School Streets network, Active Travel England and Transport for the South East.