Issue - meetings

Cabinet Member: Environment

Forward Plan Ref: 2021/031

Contact: John Disley, Infrastructure Strategy & Policy Manager Tel: 07767 006742

Report by Corporate Director Communities (CA12).

The England’s Economic Heartlands (EEH) Transport Strategy directly supports a number of the Council’s strategic priorities in the Corporate Plan, in particular reducing carbon emissions, improving air quality, reducing the need to travel, promoting public transport and active travel over private use of the car where appropriate and strengthening investment in strategic transport and digital connectivity, notably rail investment such as East-West Rail. The Strategy before Cabinet

The County Council has had significant input into the Strategy at both officer level (via the EEH Transport Group) and Member level (via the Strategic Transport Forum (STF)) and given the recent launch and importance of the Transport Strategy to the emerging County Council Local Transport and Connectivity Plan (LTCP), Cabinet are asked to formally endorse the final EEH Transport Strategy.

Recommendations agreed as amended in bold and strike through and set out in full below:

(a)    To approve England’s Economic Heartland (EEH) Transport Strategy

Cabinet endorses the England’s Economic Heartland (EEH) Transport Strategy in broad terms but is concerned to note that the previous consultation response "...that there should be greater recognition in the strategy of the need for cross boundary working with surrounding sub-national transport bodies on connectivity and scheme proposals that have impacts across both areas," appears to have been ignored.

(b)  To continue our representation on the EEH Board and Strategic Transport Forum (STF) to ensure alignment with our emerging Local Transport and Connectivity Plan (LTCP).

The England’s Economic Heartlands (EEH) Transport Strategy directly supports a number of the Council’s strategic priorities in the Corporate Plan, in particular reducing carbon emissions, improving air quality, reducing the need to travel, promoting public transport and active travel over private use of the car where appropriate and strengthening investment in strategic transport and digital connectivity, notably rail investment such as East-West Rail. The Strategy before Cabinet

The County Council has had significant input into the Strategy at both officer level (via the EEH Transport Group) and Member level (via the Strategic Transport Forum (STF)) and given the recent launch and importance of the Transport Strategy to the emerging County Council Local Transport and Connectivity Plan (LTCP), Cabinet had before them a report asking them to formally endorse the final EEH Transport Strategy.

Councillor John Sanders, Shadow Cabinet Member for Environment welcomed the commitment to consider all options as set out at paragraph 16 of the report and welcomed the focus on mass transport. However, he considered that there should be reference to the motion of council on 5 November 2019 rejecting the Expressway in favour of support for prioritising the East West Rail link. Councillor Hudspeth, Leader of the Council explained that the Strategy was not an OCC document.

Councillor David Bartholomew, referred to reference in the earlier consultation response that there should be greater recognition in the strategy of the need for cross boundary working with surrounding sub-national transport bodies on connectivity.  He expressed concern that there was no response to these comments. He proposed an amendment, seconded by Councillor Yvonne Constance to reflect this concern. The amendment was agreed unanimously, and it was:

RESOLVED: 

(a)  Cabinet endorses the England’s Economic Heartland (EEH) Transport Strategy in broad terms but is concerned to note that the previous consultation response "...that there should be greater recognition in the strategy of the need for cross boundary working with surrounding sub-national transport bodies on connectivity and scheme proposals that have impacts across both areas," appears to have been ignored.

(b)  To continue our representation on the EEH Board and Strategic Transport Forum (STF) to ensure alignment with our emerging Local Transport and Connectivity Plan (LTCP).