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ITEM CA12

HENLEY TOWN CENTRE TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPROVEMENT SCHEMES

1. Oxfordshire County Council, South Oxfordshire District Council and Henley Town Council have been working in partnership to develop an Integrated Transport Strategy for Henley on Thames.
2. In March 2003 the County Council commissioned consultants Halcrow to develop and progress an initial study completed in 1996 by Consultants Buchanan.
3. Halcrow identified three main elements for an Integrated Transport Strategy. These comprised of a Short-Medium Term Strategy, a Longer Term Strategy and a Parking Strategy.
4. The Short-Medium Term Strategy covered the period 2005-2011 and contained a series of proposals to improve the existing transport problems in the town centre. This Strategy was endorsed by South Oxfordshire and Henley Town Councils and agreed by the Executive in April 2004.
5. A major part of this Strategy was the promotion of a traffic management and environmental improvement scheme to combat the current traffic problems in the town centre and to undertake changes to the surroundings on Duke Street and Bell Street to provide a better pedestrian environment. These measures have been included in the County Council’s Provisional Local Transport Plan 2006-11, which is currently out to consultation.
6. The County Council’s Term Consultant Jacobs Babtie have progressed the design for the traffic management and environmental scheme and public consultation has been held to seek comments and to gauge the level of support of Henley residents.
7. This report describes the scheme, reports on the consultation and seeks a decision on how to proceed with the scheme.

Traffic Management Scheme

8. The principle of this scheme is to regulate the volume of traffic passing through the town centre by creating traffic flow controlling points (or ‘gateways’) at the Henley Bridge and Reading Road/Station Road junctions and making Duke Street one-way northbound. This is shown diagrammatically in Annex 1 (download as .doc file).
9. It is proposed to make Duke Street one-way northbound to reduce traffic movements through the town centre and route all southbound traffic approaching from Henley Bridge on to Thames Side, Riverside and Station Road.
10. The existing mini roundabout junction at Reading Road/Station Road would be converted to a signal controlled junction. This would create the ‘gateway’ for traffic approaching the town centre on Reading Road.
11. From this point northwards the existing signal junctions on Reading Road and Duke Street would be refurbished and all the junctions together with the Henley Bridge junction would be linked to an intelligent traffic control system known as SCOOT (Split Cycle Offset Optimisation Technique). This system monitors traffic flow and queue lengths using sensors and then adjusts the traffic signal timings accordingly to provide the desired traffic movements on the network.
12. All the signal junctions have been designed to incorporate a pedestrian phase on as many arms of the junction as possible.
13. The layout of each junction is shown in Annexes 2 to 5.
    
    (Annex 2 - download as .doc file)
    (Annex 3 - download as .doc file)
    (Annex 4 - download as .doc file)
    (Annex 5 - download as .doc file)
    

Environmental Improvement Scheme

14. With the implementation of the traffic management proposals there is scope to enhance the pedestrian environment on the Duke Street and Bell Street corridor.
15. The proposal is to widen where possible the existing narrow footways on Duke Street and Bell Street to aid movement of pedestrians and in particular wheelchair users, people with mobility aids and parents with push chairs.
16. Every opportunity would be taken to reduce street furniture and provide a ‘clean’ appearance to the street.
17. Drawing 014539/B3000 shows the extent of the scheme and will be on display at the meeting.

Consultation Process

18. Public consultation was carried out by means of a public exhibition held at the DaySpring Centre, Market Place, Henley on 23/24 September 2005. This was advertised in advance in local shops and newspaper and by erection of some 160 posters on the streets of Henley. The exhibition was manned by representatives from the County Council and consultants Jacobs Babtie.
19. A consultation leaflet was produced that described the proposals and incorporated a questionnaire page where by members of the public could indicate their level of support for the different elements and overall scheme. This page was detachable for completion and return to the County Council.
20. After the exhibition a set of exhibition plans was deposited at the Town Hall for the public to view. Copies of the consultation document were also available at the Town Hall for the public to collect and complete the questionnaire.
21. Letters including plans and the consultation leaflet were sent out to statutory bodies, local councils and emergency services. All frontages on Duke Street and Bell Street were sent a copy of the consultation leaflet and made aware of deposit plans at Henley Town Hall that could be viewed.
22. The consultation period ended on 28 October 2005.

Consultation Results

23. Some 300 people attended the exhibition over the 2 days. Those attending were encouraged to make comments on the proposals by means of ‘post its’ stuck below the drawing. There was also the opportunity for them to complete the questionnaire and deposit it at the exhibition.
24. 189 completed questionnaires have been received. 52% have indicated support for the traffic management and environmental scheme with 38% against and 10% not expressing a level of support.
25. Support for individual sites is slightly higher with, generally, around 60% support and around 30% against but views on the Henley bridge junction proposals are more evenly balanced, with some 56% in support and 39% against.
26. A summary of the responses to the questionnaire and comments received on both the questionnaire and/or ‘post its’ is shown in Annex 6 (download as .doc file) and Annex 7 (download as .doc file) respectively.
27. Henley Town Council have carried out there own referendum and have sought a response from the residents of Henley on the statement: ‘I agree that the Henley-on-Thames Traffic Improvement Plan should be implemented to the timetable’. The timetable has indicated that all works will be completed by 2007.
28. Information received to date suggests that there has been a clear result in favour of the statement and that Henley Town Council has supported the statement unanimously. Written confirmation is still awaited. It should be stressed that the result of the referendum is linked to delivery of the project to the timetable. Therefore approval of the scheme will require a commitment for the funding profile shown in the Project Appraisal and in the subsequent Capital Programme for the Local Transport Plan.
29. Rotherfield Parish Council and the Open Space Society have replied. Both have indicated support for the proposals.
30. The Police have submitted a report and raised several issues of safety relating to Thames Side, the routing of traffic during the Regatta, traffic movements through residential roads to access the town and the level of provision of loading bays required to service Duke Street and Bell Street.
31. The Fire Service has raised an objection to Duke Street becoming One-Way. This change will require them to follow Hart Street, Thames Side and Station Road to get to the south side of Henley, villages and hamlets towards Reading and will raise their attendance times. Discussions and meetings are to take place to see what can be done to minimise the delays. An update will be given at the Cabinet meeting.

Issues Raised by the Public

32. From comments made at the exhibition and on the questionnaires received, banning Heavy Goods Vehicles from Henley was supported as a course of action to combat the traffic problem.
33. Three main issues of concern were identified with the traffic management proposal.
34. The first is the safety issues concerning the tight and difficult turn required by large vehicles from Henley Bridge on to Thames Side given the level of pedestrian usage in that area. Many locals recalled that a death had occurred at this site due to a large vehicle failing to make the turn and crushing a member of the public.
35. The second is the safety and environmental concerns caused by additional traffic, particularly large vehicles, being encouraged to use Thames Side, a route that many consider both a residential area and riverside tourist location - an area thus attracting high levels of pedestrian use with limited pedestrian facilities.
36. The third is the fear that creating the signal control point at the Reading Road/Station Road junction will increase the length of vehicles queuing on Reading Road resulting in increased ‘rat running’ of traffic using residential roads to access the town centre.
37. Issues raised on the Environmental scheme concerned the lack of any Disabled Driver provisions on Duke Street and Bell Street, narrowing Hart Street junction to one lane – (would it cope with the traffic?) - and the increased use of Greys Road car park by vehicles passing through to avoid the Thames Side /Station Road route.

Officer Comments

Issue: Heavy Goods Vehicle Ban

38. Whilst it is accepted that the roads within Henley were never designed to cater for the large vehicles of today and by their very nature the existing roads make some turning movements difficult for such vehicles, the promotion of a ban for all such vehicles is not an option.
39. Servicing of the local shops and stores would still be required and therefore provision would need to be made for such vehicles to access Henley. This would dilute the Order and make Police enforcement very difficult. The Police would have to identify those vehicles that were legally entitled to be within the controlled area and those that were not. This would require a large commitment in manpower in order to secure a conviction. Given the level of resource the Police have it is considered this would be a very low priority.

Issue: Thames Side

40. It is accepted that the left turn on to Thames Side is not an easy manoeuvre but there is no scope to improve the turn due to the presence of existing buildings. The signals will operate in such a way that no opposing traffic will run when the Henley Bridge arm is on ‘green’. This will allow the full width of the junction carriageway to be available for large vehicles to make the turn. Site observations and design techniques have been used to verify that a large vehicle can make the turn. There will always be a risk that not all drivers will complete the turn in one movement.
41. Based on existing traffic data and assuming 100% of traffic now turning left at Duke Street will divert on to Thames Side then the daily left turn traffic at Henley Bridge will increase by 50% (2219 vehicles /12Hr increased to 3320 vehicles /12Hr) and an overall increase of 20.6% in traffic flow on the route (5,345 vehicles /12 Hr increased to 6,446 vehicles /12 Hr).
42. Similarly Heavy Goods Vehicles weighing over 3 tonnes turning left on to Thames Side would increase by 80% (50 vehicles/12Hr increased to 90 vehicles /12Hr) and an overall increase of 35.4% in HGV vehicle flow on the route. (113 vehicles /12 Hr increased to 153 vehicles /12 Hr).
43. Conversely the diverted traffic will reduce the overall traffic flow on Duke Street by 14% (8010 vehicles /12 Hr decreased to 6909 vehicles /12 Hr) and HGV flow by 18% (221vehicles /12 Hr decreased to 181vehicles /12 Hr).
44. The issue of safety of pedestrians in this area has already been raised by Henley Town Council and officers have agreed to look at the area with a view to improving pedestrian access as part of the proposals. This could take the form of a widened footway and a formal crossing point. An allowance has been made in the cost estimate.

Issue: Regatta

45. The Regatta does impose additional traffic management problems on Henley. Large volumes of pedestrians use Henley Railway Station and walk to the Regatta site via Thames Side and Henley Bridge. Current practice is to close Thames Side and re-route all southbound traffic on to Duke Street. With Duke Street made One-Way this option will not be possible and therefore the only alternative route for southbound vehicles is along Hart Street, through the Market Place, along Gravel Hill, Deanfield Avenue and Greys Road before returning to the Reading Road. Further talks with the Police and Regatta organisers are required to review the management of traffic and pedestrians for future Regattas. Additional re-routing of vehicles may need to be put in place in Berkshire to deter unnecessary traffic from entering Henley.

Issue: Traffic Impact on Reading Road

46. Major queuing already exists on Reading Road during peak hours. Converting the junction at Reading Road/Station Road will effectively move the start point of this queue to begin outside the town centre area. Monitoring of the morning peak traffic flow on the Reading Road and the residential side roads has been undertaken and will continue annually. Interpretation of the figures to date has revealed that, contrary to public perception, there is limited transfer from Reading Road through the residential roads to access the town via Greys Road. Figures indicate that most traffic is generated from the residential area itself and very little transfer is occurring. The use of SCOOT will manage the traffic such that delay is no worse than currently exists on the route and the expectation is that overall journey time on this corridor could improve.

Issue: Disabled Parking

47. The Environmental Scheme proposed for the Duke Street/Bell Street corridor has only provided loading/unloading bays, in an attempt to prohibit unnecessary vehicles from stopping in the corridor. Further investigation is being undertaken to see if Hart Street can accommodate Disabled Parking.
48. The single lane at the Duke Street/Hart Street junction is considered all that is required to cater for traffic flows. This creates an area of surplus carriageway that could be utilised for possible disabled parking, on-street parking or a taxi rank.

Issue: Loading Bay provisions

49. Shops on the streets affected have been approached to seek the level of service by delivery vehicles. These results were used to develop the design. Consultation letters were sent to all frontages and to date no comments have been received indicating that the proposals are inadequate.

Issue: Increased use of Greys Road Car Park as ‘through route’

50. It is accepted that this may become the preferred route by some drivers, particularly if they are travelling to Greys Road, and it would be difficult to stop this from occurring. The link through the car park is not public highway and any changes would have to be considered by the District Council.

Conclusions

51. The result of the consultation via the questionnaire shows a small majority in support for implementing the proposals.
52. The diversion of traffic from Duke Street on to Thames Side will serve to reduce the air quality problems in the town centre and allow major changes to the streetscape and overall pedestrian environment.
53. The introduction of ‘gateways’ and SCOOT is considered the only practical improvement that can be made to better manage the traffic in and on the approaches to the town.
54. Closure of Duke Street to southbound traffic raises several issues centred on Thames Side. They are the increased traffic particularly large vehicles, the safety of pedestrians that frequent the area, the environmental impact on the residents and dealing with traffic during the Regatta.
55. It is clear that there is no easy answer to the problems caused by traffic in Henley and the positive effects to be gained by the proposals offered also have a negative effect on other areas. As those most affected will be the residents of Henley their support and the full support of Henley Town Council should be the deciding factor on whether or not to proceed with the scheme.

Environmental Implications

56. In preparation for the submission of the second Local Transport Plan Henley on Thames was identified as a location that suffers from congestion, air quality problems, and a poor street environment. The assessment of the County’s identified problems resulted in a list of priorities for investment, with Henley scoring sufficiently high enough to be included in the County Council’s programme of works, as set out in the Provisional Local Transport Plan 2006-2011.
57. South Oxfordshire District Council declared an Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) in Henley in 2002, in response to an excedence in nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) against national objectives. The AQMA covers the length of Duke Street. Traffic moving erratically or queuing for long periods generally produces greater emissions than smooth-flowing traffic. The proposed management of the flow of traffic through this area will remove these conditions and contribute to the reduction in pollutant concentrations in order to meet national air quality standards. The impact of this scheme on reducing pollutant concentrations in the AQMA will be monitored.
58. The approaches to Henley already suffer from traffic congestion and queuing in periods of heavy traffic. The traffic management scheme will not remove the queues unless traffic numbers significantly reduce. Therefore the environmental conditions on the approach roads will remain much the same.
59. The creation of the ‘gateways’ will allow the volume of traffic passing through the town centre to be regulated and therefore the environmental conditions on roads within the town centre will be improved.
60. The changes necessary to install the traffic management scheme at the specific junctions are not considered to increase the visual impact at the sites. Most of the sites remain unchanged in appearance in that signals exist now and will remain with the new proposals. The only major change is at Station Road where the mini roundabout is removed and signals are installed.
61. As stated before the traffic flow on Thames Side will increase. This will be perceived as a significant impact on the environmental conditions for residents and pedestrians frequenting the riverside. Additional measures are to be investigated to improve the safety issues for pedestrians.
62. The environmental improvement by its very nature will have a significant visual impact on the town centre roads of Duke Street and Bell Street. The expectation is to give back the streets to the pedestrian and carry out enhancements to reduce street furniture and provide a high quality finish in keeping with the town’s conservation area status. These changes will improve the overall safety of pedestrians in the area and the traffic management will regulate the traffic passing through.

Financial and Staff Implications

63. The cost estimate for the County Council’s Traffic Management and Environmental Improvement scheme is £1,598K based on a ‘like for like’ use of materials. It is programmed to be implemented over financial years 2005/06, 2006/07 and 2007/08.
64. The predicted cost of the scheme in this financial year is £285K. £255K (£43K SCE, £100K developer contributions, £112K other funding) has already been secured through Transport Capital Programme allocation. It is proposed that the remaining £30K will be assigned to this project from the predicted SCE underspend of other ITS towns. Funding in subsequent years needs to be secured through the Local Transport Plan 2006-11 which will be considered by Cabinet in February 2006.
65. If special materials such as York stone paving and granite kerbs are to be used on Duke Street and Bell Street then contributions from South Oxfordshire District Council and Henley Town Council will be required. Their contributions are estimated at around £1M and have yet to be secured.
66. A project appraisal is attached at Annex 8 (download as .doc file).
67. Progress of the scheme from completion of design to end of construction will be carried out by Oxfordshire Highways. Resources can be met within existing staff levels.

RECOMMENDATIONS

68. The Cabinet is RECOMMENDED to:

1. approve Project Appraisal H180;
2. authorise officers to proceed with the design and implementation of the Traffic Management and Environmental Improvement Scheme subject to (c) below; and
3. authorise officers to promote any Traffic Regulation Orders necessary for the implementation of the Traffic Management and Environmental Improvement scheme, subject to any objections being reported back to the Transport Implementation Committee for decision.

STEVE HOWELL
Head of Transport

Background papers: Halcrow’s Henley on Thames Integrated Transport Strategy Reports Stages 1, 2, 3 and Technical Report Stage 4

Contact Officer: Mike Collins Tel: Oxford 815877

December 2005

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