Agenda item

The Committee will receive a report setting out the key areas within the Mayor’s Transport Strategy and London Plan and how additional “in year” funding from Transport for London will be allocated.

The Committee received a briefing paper on the Local Implementation Plan Annual Spending Submission. 

Each year the council bid to Transport for London (TfL) for funding for its transport projects and programmes.  A report went to Cabinet in July 2014 which set out the key areas within the London Plan and the Mayor’s Transport Strategy which the submission must address and how additional funding would be allocated. 

Officers explained that Havering’s funding from TfL has three elements:

Corridors, Neighbourhoods and Supporting Measure: These are comprehensive scheme and local area improvements.  They include schemes to tackle congestion, assist freight, contribute to regeneration, deliver environmental improvements, Controlled Parking Zones, 20mph zones, cycling, walking, bus priority and bus stop accessibility.

Principal Road Maintenance: This focuses on the improvement to the surface of Havering’s Principal Road Network.  This is dependent on the condition surveys which determine how much of the Principal Road Network across London requires structural maintenance.  This funding has reduced, but reflects the good condition of Havering’s regular maintenance of principal roads.

Local Transport Funding: This is £100k for projects of the Council’s choice that support the delivery of the Mayor’s Transport Strategy.

The Committee noted that the Havering’s formal Submission has to comply with the following:

Mayor of London’s London Plan and his Transport Strategy – the London Plan sets out the Mayor’s overarching strategic land use planning priorities and policies for London.  The Transport Strategy interprets the Mayor’s London Plan transport vision and details how he and his partners will deliver the plan over the next 20 years.

Council’s approved Local Implementation Plan (LIP) strategy document – Under the legislation set out in Section 45 of the GLA Act 1999 all London Boroughs have to prepare a Local Implementation Plan.  Havering’s LIP is effectively the transport strategy and sets out how the Council will implement the Mayor’s Transport Strategy within its own area.

Council’s approved 2014/15 to 2016/17 Three Year Delivery Plan – Havering’s LIP is supported by its 2014/15 – 2016/17 Three Year Delivery Plan which was prepared in 2013.  It sets out the programme content of Havering’s Annual Spending Submissions for this period and has been approved by TfL.  The Delivery Plan will also addresses the Mayoral targets for mandatory indicators including modal share, bus service reliability, asset condition, road traffic casualties and CO2 emissions.

Latest TfL Guidance on preparing Local Implementation Plan – Every year TfL published guidance notes that boroughs have to follow when preparing their LIP submissions.  These guidance notes often include any new Mayoral priorities that may have arisen since the last LIP submissions.  The Committee were informed that in the 2015/16 guidance it drew attention to the Mayor’s commitments relating to making it easier for people to Walk and Cycle, Road Safety, Air Quality, Freight, Bus Access and the Mayor’s Roads Task Force.

Members asked about the further funding from other sources.  Officer explained that there was often potential for match funding from developers.  This was the case with the Sustran Connect 2 project, this was match-funded by the BIG Lottery Funding and LIP funding.

Members asked about the additional money that was received from the Government and TfL for road repairs due to the bad weather.  Officers explained that the Department for Transport in the last two financial years had allocated £403,000 for patching and resurfacing the roads in poor repair, and £402,000 had been allocated from Transport for London.  Officers stated that they had details of the money spent on roads, as they needed to be accountable to TfL. 

Officers stated that boroughs had access to other TfL pots of funding in line with the Mayors priorities including for accessible bus stops, Air Quality and Cycling.  In previous years TfL had allocated £350,000 for bus stop accessibility schemes, this year £370,000 had been allocated.  The bus stop accessibility works had been carried out not just for the bus stop but as part of a wider package of works to include the footpath and other areas around the bus stop.

Members asked about the Mayor’s Roads Task Force and what they carried out.  Officer stated that this was chaired by the Deputy Mayor, Isabel Dedring.  The task force looked at innovative road ideas to reduce congestion in London, in co-ordination with all London Boroughs. Within Havering, the area that the Mayor had committed too was Gallows Corner.  The Mayor is also committed to implementing a number of cycling initiatives including an east?west cycle super-highways and the mini-Holland project which would see cycle hubs in some boroughs.

Officers stated that they were carrying out extensive work in relation to cycling in the borough.  They were working with schools through the bikeability scheme at primary schools right through to training for HGV drivers in becoming aware of cyclists on the road and the safety aspects.  The funding was used wisely and a programme of training was submitted prior to the funding being released. There were targets for modal split which were set in line with the Mayoral targets.

The Committee thanked officers for the informative brief and asked that details of the next three year plan engage members at a ward level before the final report is approved by Cabinet.