Agenda item

The report of the Chief Officer, Highways and Transportation is to brief ward members on the Leeds Streets for All campaign which will go live in November and to gather insight in how best to engage with the community.

The report of the Chief Officer (Highways and Transportation) presented a report that introduced a verbal update on the Leeds Streets for All campaign which will go live January 2025.

The Senior Project Officer, Head of Transport Strategy and Team Leader (Transport Strategy) attended the meeting to provide the update on the Leeds Streets for All update, with an aim to try and gather information on how residents travel and to gain insight on the infrastructure across all wards.

The following information was provided:

·  Residents, businesses, and stakeholders could access the consultation by visiting the website and dropping a pin on a map to highlight where specific issues were in the local area.

·  The main themes for this consultation are vehicles and parking, walking, and wheeling (including accessibility, prams, wheelchairs, and scooters), cycling, accessing bus stops and rail stations and street environment.

·  The information provided would assist the Highways and Transport Service to prioritise improvements, as and when funding becomes available.

·  It is hoped that the consultation for the Inner North East Community Committee area will be live January 2025, for a period of 6 weeks.

·  Officers asked for feedback regarding localised communications and digital advertising. It was confirmed that there are also sample materials in terms of flyers and posters which include a QR code to translate information to different languages. The team will also work with digitally excluded people and target harder to reach groups.

·  Consultation exercises have taken place in other Community Committee areas and feedback received from them has helped shape ideas. The Inner North West Community Committee area was the first to go live, and 610 pins were dropped on their map over the course of the consultation. Other areas have had a couple of thousand.

·  The map can show where hotspots are and allows people to input their own messages.

The following was discussed:

·  Members provided details of suitable venues where consultation events can take place in the community such as Oakwood Farmers Market.

·  Members highlighted a successful street surgery that took place in the locality and numerous issues touched on parking on pavements, traffic, and vehicular obstruction. Further to this, additional concerns were raised regarding existing infrastructure issues, and the safety risks associated with it.

·  It was suggested that the team get in contact with Brackenwood Community Association.

·  Clarity on the meaning of the video to promote the consultation and the importance of it being accessible to all.

·  Being able to evidence schemes that have already taken place in the area and giving people success stories for consultation to be successful.

·  Liaising with existing services such as refuse.

·  It was acknowledged that there are limitations in terms of funding. However, it was noted there are things that can be done in terms of education and campaigns locally.

·  Members highlighted the importance of follow-up work leading on from the consultation, and keeping responders informed of any proposed schemes and/or works.

·  Being mindful of digitally excluded people and ensuring they have their say and are included in the consultation.

·  Clarity on ward prioritisation.

·  Difficulties associated with hotspots such as Harehills Lane and Shepherds Lane regarding traffic. Officers confirmed they will be attending a meeting to look at options in terms of such issues.

·  Limitations in terms of enforcement and lack of resources.

·  Some streets may have 5 or 6 cars per house due to some areas being densely populated. This is also an issue in connection with a shortage on housing in the city.

In responding to questions from Members, the following was confirmed:

·  The consultation is necessary in securing funding for future projects and schemes. The consultation will enable the service to pull together a plan for each of the Community Committee areas and develops a locally supported plan.

·  It is acknowledged that local existing infrastructure is an issue.

·  Consultation outcomes will be provided at an area level and not for individual respondents. This may be in the form of a newsletter.

·  If some of the responses from the consultation are better directed at other services, Highways colleagues will pass this information on to that service.

·  Leeds Local Implementation (LIP) can look at arranging days to meet with digitally excluded people and work with them to fill out their responses.

·  Ward prioritisation in terms of funding will be dependent on criteria and statistics in terms of road safety data. The aim is to distribute funding fairly. However, there is currently no criteria at present to confirm this.

The Chair thanked officers for their attendance and update provided at the meeting and to echo any ideas to the Chair prior to the consultation going live.

RESOLVED – To note the report and update provided during the meeting.

Councillors Rafique and Hussain arrived at 17:15 and Councillor Dowson arrived at 17:30.