Agenda and draft minutes

To receive the notes of the meeting held on 19 May 2020

The notes of the meeting held on 19 May were received.

The Group will receive a presentation from the Projects Engineer on the LCWIP Final Report followed by a Group discussion on its conclusions and recommendations

The Senior Projects Engineer gave a presentation on the Council’s proposed Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP).  The Plan had been informed through stakeholder workshops that had included Parish and Neighbourhood Councils, Horsham District Cycling Forum, Horsham Town Community Partnership and Horsham Society.

Having a LCWIP in place would help HDC benefit from the government’s £2 billion initiative to help local authorities plan cycling and walking infrastructure, and other future funding opportunities. 

The Plan focused on the area within five kilometres of Horsham Town, and the town centre itself.  It included a number of radial routes including from North Horsham, Broadbridge Heath, Brighton Road and Southwater.  Potential corridors had been assessed using a number of criteria (e.g. safety, directness and gradient), and potential infrastructure improvements identified. 

The Group noted that the LCWIP focussed on the Town Centre to complement the WSCC cycling strategy, which concentrated on the wider district.  The Cabinet Member stated that further routes could be added to reflect the availability of future s106 developer funding.

The Director of Place stated that there would be stakeholder and public consultation over the summer, followed by a further stakeholder workshop, if necessary. Once finalised the proposed LCWIP would be brought to the next PDAG before being considered by Cabinet on 24 September and full Council on 14 October. 

The Group will receive an update on progress in developing emergency and future schemes to assist active travel for cyclists and pedestrians with regard to the easing of Covid 19 travel restrictions

The Senior Project Engineer advised that a number of schemes on HDC’s Priority List of proposed cycling and pedestrian schemes were being submitted to WSCC in bids for the second tranche of the Government’s Emergency Active Travel Fund.  The schemes involved were either included in the LCWIP or linked to WSCC’s cycling strategy.

The Group discussed the nature of the various projects, most of which were small in scale or specific to a junction or pedestrian crossing area.  The Group advised the Cabinet Member that they considered that those directly benefitting Horsham Town schools, Tanbridge and Forest, should be prioritized. 

The Cabinet Member agreed to review the priority list to see if there were any viable adjustments that could be made before submitting bids.  He reminded the Group that schemes would have to be part-funded.