CPZ Feasibility Study

OXFORDSHIRE

COUNTY COUNCIL

www.oxfordshire.gov.uk

Speedwell House

Speedwell Street

Oxford

OX1 1NE

My ref: RJK/1 2.5.6.1 Your ref:

Please ask for: Richard Kingshott

Direct line: 01865 815716

richard.kingshott@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Tel: 01865 815700

Fax: 01865 815085

Letter from Principle Engineer Dealing with Residents’ Parking

Oxforshire Highways

www.oxfordshirehighways.org

Improving Your Roads

Mr Le Roy Garner

Clerk to Old Marston Parish Council

31, Oxford Road

Old Marston

OX3 OPU

17 December 2007

Dear Mr Le Roy Garner,

Controlled Parking Zone Feasibility Study

Thank you for your letter dated 1 November 2007 which provided feedback from the recent Parish Council which discussed the possible introduction of a Controlled Parking Zone in Old Marston.

I apologise for the delay in replying to you. This is because I was awaiting the results of the traffic survey analysis. I also carried out another site visit of the area to clarify certain issues.

The report is still being prepared and definite recommendations still have to be agreed with other Officers before presentation to the Cabinet Member for Transport Ian Hudspeth in early February 2008. He will then decide which schemes will form part of the programme and their priority within it.

However I think it is reasonably safe to say that the Old Marston area will not form a priority when considering promotion of future Controlled Parking Zones within Oxford. Given the evidence so far the most likely recommendations will be the promotion of local parking restrictions in your area.

An example of this would be addressing the issue of commuter parking outside the shops in Cherwell Drive by introducing some short term parking restrictions. Another would be the removal of commuter parking at the Rippington Drive / Oxford Road Service Road junction by promoting some No Waiting at Any Time restrictions.

If a Controlled Parking Zone were to be introduced then it would most likely be in the form of a Restricted Parking Zone similar that in The Lakes and Northway. However arterial routes would require conventional treatment. The most likely restriction times would be 9.00am to 5.00pm.

Oxfordshire County Council is a partner in Oxfordshire Highways

As yet no area for such a zone has yet been recommended and I suspect that even if it was, further survey work would need to be carried out to determine its exact extent. However its core would be the arterial routes through the zone where commuters park and ride on public transport.

Once the report has been completed such issues will become clearer. Regardless of the type and extent of any new proposed restrictions the Council would wish to promote, such restrictions these would be subject to a full consultation process which would include every resident affected.

You have raised specific queries regarding the workings of any proposed Controlled Parking Zone. Some of the replies given are hypothetical but already apply to many of the existing zones.

I have already mentioned the issue of commuter parking outside the Chen/veil Drive shops. If no Controlled Parking Zone is recommended or if it does not appear early in the programme, then I will recommend that short term parking places be promoted at this location early in the next financial year.

As indicated in the presentation to you, the Feasibility Study is focussed solely on parking issues and does not include traffic calming matters. However I will mention in the report that the speed of the traffic in the Cherwell Drive Service Road should be addressed a separate traffic management matter, as soon as possible.

Parking on the access between the property boundary and the highway has not been permitted in other Controlled Parking Zones where a No Waiting at Any Time restriction exists in the carriageway. However this has been the cause of objections by other residents in other zones and is currently under review.

Any disabled blue badge holder can apply for a Disabled Persons Parking Place free of charge. However any space allotted can be used by any blue badge holder and would not be for the exclusive use of the applicant.

Medical staff is issued with a Medical Carers Permit and therefore would not require a visitor's permit. Non medical carers would either need to use visitors' permits or if long term care is involved, long term visitors permits are available.

Tradesmen's vehicles could either use nearby short term parking places or visitor permits. If residents require ongoing work such as building maintenance then the tradesman concerned will need to apply for a tradesmen's permit at £15 per week.

Unfortunately the resident in Beechey Avenue would not be allowed to park his caravan in any of the Two Hour Shared Use or Permit Holder Only parking places. This is because it is not classed as a permitted vehicle.

According to the County Councils records Southcroft is a highway maintainable at public expense. However I confirm that the caravan sites off Butts Lane and Park way are private roads. Other private roads identified as such are Bradlands, Butts Lane (part), and Cannons Field, Cumberledge Close, Lodge Close (part), Marsh Lane (part), Park Way, Rimmer Close and White Hart.

Unless the owners of these roads can be identified and permission given to the County Council to introduce waiting restrictions within them, then these roads would be omitted from the scheme. It should be noted that such roads would be far enough away from the bus routes into Oxford to act as a deterrent to commuters wishing to park on street.

Any City Council vehicles parked within the zone would require a valid permit. Unless these vehicles were parked off street, such vehicles would be most unlikely to fulfil the necessary criteria for such permits.

As yet no decision has been made regarding the types of controls that would be introduced in Raymund Road. The Council would liaise directly with the Primary and Secondary Schools in this respect. Some form of control has already been identified in the School Travel Plan to mitigate pavement parking by parents, as well as complimentary measures in Arlington Drive to encourage walking and cycling.

Every resident who drives a permitted vehicle registered in their name would be eligible to receive a Parking Permit for it. However no permits would be issued for works vehicles unless it was their sole means of transport and conformed to the size and weight requirements (i.e. less than 5 metres long, 2 metres wide, 2 metres high and less than 2.25 tonnes in weight.) Furthermore only one permit can only be issued to each resident. A resident cannot have two permits.

Any such scheme in Marsh Lane would affect anyone who currently parks on the grass verge. It is unlikely that any parking place will be created along the road itself as it is an arterial route. As mentioned before the issue of parking on access crossings is under review.

If the current situation remains the same then unfortunately Marsh Lane residents would have to park in side streets or in their own front gardens. As you are now aware this road as well as Ashlong Road are probably the most difficult areas within a proposed new CPZ that would need to be resolved.

Funerals in mid week would be catered for some short term parking in the vicinity of St Nicholas Church.

Please be aware that these sorts of issues are normally dealt with at the detailed designed stage rather than at the feasibility stage. However they should give you some idea of the approach the County Council may take in considering the restrictions within any proposed - new Controlled Parking Zone.

Yours sincerely

Richard Kingshott

Principal Engineer

Controlled Parking Zones

Summary of Open Meeting Hosted by Old Marston Parish Council Regarding Proposed Controlled Parking Zones in Old Marston held on 16 March 2007

The purpose of this meeting is to present details of the proposed introduction of Controlled Parking Zones in Old Marston and for residents to express their opinions on the scheme. These views will be presented to the County Council to enable them to make a more informed decision when implemmenting the scheme. The next stage will involve consultations with the contractors in early 2008 who will be evaluating and inplementing the scheme. All residents can be involved in the consultation with the contractor. The scheme is due to be implemented late 2008.

The clerk informed the meeting that further enquiries should be directed to Richard Kingshot at Oxfordshire County Council, who is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Controlled Parking Zones.

Surveyors from the County Council will surveying the roads around the parish to evaluate the levels of parking and road use, starting at 04:00hrs and taking measurements every two hours.

In addition to the residents' parking will be the allocation of permits for visitors' parking. Residents will receive 25 visitor parking permits for six months. The first six months will be free then it will cost £15 for the following six months. Residents over the age of 70 years will have free parking permits. The scheme only applies to parking on the road and not to residents parked within their front boundary. Having a permit to park in the street does not guarantee a parking bay and in some areas there may be less parking bays than permits, which has the potential to sour relationships with neighbours. Residents will need to prove that they are residents and have a vehicle. Residents without cars are still entitled to visitors permits.

Several options are being proposed. One suggestion is simply having notices at the ends of roads stating that it is a residents' only parking area. A similar scheme has been employed in the area known as the lakes (Eden Drive, Ambleside Drive, Bowness Avenue, Conniston Avenue, Derwent Avenue and Snowdon Mead). Designated bays and yellow lines on roads is another option, although some residents were not happy about having numerous yellow lines painted over the roads. The Scheme will be enforced by Control Plus working on behalf of the County Council.

One resident wanted to know if there will be concessions for the disabled or for health visitors on official business. The Clerk and Chairman will look into this.

In Marsh Lane parking is not allowed on the grass verges but it happens. The police have admitted that they have no-one to enforce the parking restrictions. Some residents wondered if the scheme would be enforced.

A number of residents asked if they would have a parking bay outside their house or if there would be enough parking bays for all of the residents. The general consensus is that there was no guarantee that there would be enough parking for all those with permits.

The options available are: Monday to Sunday, Monday to Saturday, Monday to Friday, 24 hours per day, 09:00hrs to 17:00hrs or 08:00hrs to 18:30hrs. A vote was taken on the options and the most popular option was Monday to Friday from 09:00hrs to 17:00hrs. Visitors tend to arrive in the evening or at the weekend and this would extend the cost or the permits if the time restrictions were longer.

Someone asked how Arlington Drive and Raymund Road near the school would be affected.

Some of the roads in the parish are private and will not be covered by the scheme. Some residents expressed concern that once the controlled parking comes into effect then the unwanted traffic will move into the private roads. They would like to know support they would receive.

It was felt that the cost of the scheme would rise in subsequent years. A number of residents said that the parking scheme would have a very limited benefit and was simply a means of making money by the County Council. One suggestion made was to give residents free parking and to charge the offenders. The City Council have their agenda: reducing car journeys and improving the environment. The effect of this is that a number of residents are likely to knock down their walls and to pave over their front gardens to accommodate their vehicles. This will raise issues of planning permission.

One resident asked what the situation was for commercial vehicles and residents running a business from home. Someone asked if council employees who parked council vehicles outside their properties would be subject to the same restrictions and charges as other residents. The Clerk and the Chairman will look into this.

When the meeting was asked, no-one admitted to wanting the scheme but felt that it was inevitable.