Agenda and minutes

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors J.A. Davies, A. James. W.J. Lemon and W.G. Thomas. 

There were no declarations of personal interest.

There were no declarations of party whips.

No public questions were received.

Clarification was sought as to when the corporate manslaughter development session requested by the Committee, would be held. The Assistant Consultant informed the Committee that its request had been referred to the Learning & Development Unit but as yet, no date had been arranged. The Executive Board Member for Technical Services confirmed that this development session had been provided for Executive Board members and that it would now be offered to all members. 

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the items to be considered at the next scheduled meeting on Friday 13th May 2016, be noted.

The Committee considered the Carmarthenshire County Council’s second Road Safety Strategy for 2016-20. The Committee received a brief presentation which outlined the strategy’s aims to address a number of key challenges, namely:

·         Reducing the number of road deaths and serious injuries

·         Rural road safety

·         Working to protect young persons and motorcyclists

·         Reducing inappropriate and illegal road user behaviour including speeding, drink and drug driving, and careless and dangerous driving

·         Protecting pedestrians and cyclists

·         Improving the Authority’s knowledge and understanding of casualty data to solve road safety problems

The Committee was informed that the Authority would continue to invest in road safety through funding of road safety education, evaluation and engineering and continued support for enforcement action by the Police. Officers would also continue to engage in collaboration and partnership working to deliver road safety education initiatives and identify sites for enforcement and engineering intervention.

The following issues were raised in relation to the report:

Reference was made to the increasing number of road safety incidents involving older drivers and in response to a question on the relationship between General Practitioners (GPs) and the Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), the Head of Transport & Engineering stated that GPs and DVLA relied on individuals declaring any medical issues or conditions that might disqualify them from holding their driving licence any longer. He informed the Committee that in light of the recent refuse lorry accident in Glasgow, the DVLA had issued new guidance to GPs on the requirements to notify DVLA, although the issue of patient confidentiality is a difficult one for GPs.

It was asked whether the data gathered by the Authority in relation to road traffic collisions enabled officers to drill down and look at trends relating to the time of day or weather conditions when an accident took place. The Head of Engineering & Transport informed the Committee that this was possible and it was a key piece of work which the Authority wanted to develop in order to help officers better understand the data and potential causes of accidents. A Data Sub-Group was due to be established by the local Road Action Safety Group to action this work.

In response to a comment regarding young people’s perceptions of risk, the Head of Transport & Engineering acknowledged that this was a challenging area for officers as individuals’ understanding of risk often did not develop fully until their mid twenties which made the Authority’s work with young people all the more critical.

Clarification was sought in relation to the criteria for establishing 20mph zones outside schools and whether this was now compulsory. The Head of Transport & Engineering stated that it was not compulsory to introduce these zones outside schools but it was a policy aspiration of Welsh Government. Establishing such zones outside schools was based on assessment criteria linked with the number of incidents, traffic and pedestrian volumes but ultimately, the programme was dependent on the funds available at any given time.   

Reference was made to those driving for work and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 6.

The Committee considered an update on the consultation process undertaken in relation to a proposal to declare an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) within Carmarthen. The Committee noted that it had previously been consulted on the proposal at its meeting in April 2015. The report outlined the responses received during the consultation period which commenced on the 5th October 2015 and ended on the 30th November 2015. No specific objections were received in respect of setting the boundary although the Public Health Services Manager acknowledged that concerns had been raised that the proposed boundary did not include Job’s Well Road, College Road or Llansteffan Road.

The following issues were raised in relation to the report:

Disappointment was expressed that Job’s Well Road, College Road and Llansteffan Road remained outside the AQMA boundary. The Public Health Services Manager informed the Committee that due to the supporting evidence required to designate an AQMA, air quality monitoring previously carried out on these roads had indicated that it was unlikely there would be a breach of the Air Quality Objective (AQO). However, due consideration had been given to the concerns in respect of these roads and it was acknowledged that some sections of the roads suffered from considerable congestion at peak times. The new Carmarthen West development and Link Road also had to be taken in to account and, as yet, the impacts from these developments were unknown. It was considered that the link road would relieve pressure on these roads and with these factors in mind, it was not considered appropriate for them to be included within the AQMA boundary at this time. However, these areas would be continue to be monitored and could be included at a future date, should it be required.

Reference was made to the NO2 Diffusion Tube results for 50 Priory Street and it was asked what could have caused such a significant increase after 2011/12. The Public Health Services Manager stated that the reason was unknown but might have been as a result of road works, introduction of traffic lights or the weather. She added that should the proposal to declare and AQMA be approved, action groups involving a variety of officers would analyse this data in more detail to ascertain the reasons for this variance. The Head of Transport & Engineering stated that it was likely to be the result of a combination of factors such as vehicle technology improvements, traffic flow and the introduction of a 20mph zone outside Richmond Park School.

The Committee UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the report be received and that the Executive Board be recommended to endorse:

7.1       The proposal to issue an Order designating the boundary of an Air Quality Management Area, (AQMA), for Carmarthen as illustrated in attached report; 

7.2       The proposal to set up a Steering Group made up of all relevant stakeholders to assist in the development of an Action Plan and;

7.3       The proposal to develop an Action Plan in accordance with legislative requirements that will pursue the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

The Committee considered an update on the consultation process undertaken in relation to a proposal to declare an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) within Llanelli. The Committee noted that it had previously been consulted on the proposal at its meeting in April 2015. The report outlined the responses received during the consultation period which commenced on the 5th October 2015 and ended on the 30th November 2015. No specific objections had been received in respect of setting the boundary and the need to designate an AQMA. However, the Committee was informed that following a significant response received requesting that Sandy Road be included within the boundary of the AQMA, the proposed boundary map had now been amended to include both Sandy Road and Bassett Terrace.

Reference was made to the poor air quality in Llandeilo and it was asked whether there was any update on progress relating to the proposed by-pass. The Executive Board Member for Technical Services informed the Committee that since a By-Pass Forum meeting early in the new year, both she and the Head of transport & Engineering had been pressing the Welsh Government Minister for clarification on the status of the scheme. The Head of Transport & Engineering stated that the last communication received from the Welsh Government had stated that various studies were due to commence in February / March and would include ecology and hydrology studies along the preferred routes. Officers were eager to keep the relevant local stakeholders informed but to date, no response had been received. 

It was suggested that an update on the Air Quality Management Area in Llandeilo be presented to the Committee at a later date. The Public Health Services Manager agreed to include this in the Committee’s work programme for 2016/17. 

The Committee UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the report be received and that the Executive Board be recommended to endorse:

8.1       The proposal to issue an Order designating the boundary of an Air Quality Management Area, (AQMA), for Llanelli as illustrated in attached report; 

8.2       The proposal to set up a Steering Group made up of all relevant stakeholders to assist in the development of an Action Plan and;

8.3       The proposal to develop an Action Plan in accordance with legislative requirements that will pursue the improvement of air quality and the reduction of nitrogen dioxide levels within the AQMA.

RESOLVED that the reason for the non-submission of the Committee’s Task and Finish Group Final Report relating to Car Parking Charges, be noted.

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on Friday 26th February 2016 be signed as a correct record.