Issue - meetings

Forward Plan Ref: 2020/072

Contact: Hugh Potter, Group Manager – Area Operations Hub Tel: 07766 998704

Report by Director for Community Operations (Interim) (CMDE13).

The report presents responses received to a statutory consultation to introduce a 30mph speed limit on Cumnor Hill in place of the existing 40mph speed limit and also a 30mph speed limit on the Kimmeridge Road residential development as requested by Cumnor Parish Council and, if approved, funded from s106 contributions received from developers, the Area Parish Support budget and Cumnor Parish Council.

The Cabinet Member for the Environment is RECOMMENDED to approve the proposed 30mph speed limits as advertised.

Approved

Officers to undertake a speed survey on the section of Oxford Road currently remaining at 40mph with a view to a reduction to 30.

The Cabinet Member for Environment considered a report (CMDE13) presenting responses received to a statutory consultation to introduce a 30mph speed limit on Cumnor Hill in place of the existing 40mph speed limit and also a 30mph speed limit on the Kimmeridge Road residential development as requested by Cumnor Parish Council and, if approved, funded from s106 contributions received from developers, the Area Parish Support budget and Cumnor Parish Council.

Tom Christophers (Cumnor Parish Council) gave a brief synopsis of the parish of Cumnor and the distinct and unique identities of the several communities which made up a parish with 7,000 residents. For almost a decade those residents had raised concern over the speed driven by traffic along the Cumnor Hill, from the boundary with North Hinksey parish to the centre of Cumnor village, which served as an extension of one of the main arteries out of Oxford. The recent case of a local schoolgirl being struck by a car, however, and the subsequent speed surveys (three) commissioned by Cumnor Parish Council provided evidence that traffic speeds should be lowered to a 30mph speed limit without additional supporting traffic calming measures.

The landscape of this road had changed greatly from when it was first designated and residents and the parish council recognised that it had not moved with the times and was no longer appropriate or sustainable with increased traffic volumes. The environment in the parish had changed considerably and the continued traffic speed was now at odds with the current and forecast future development of the hill. Cumnor Hill served as a thoroughfare to three local schools in Cumnor and North Hinksey parishes and the number of school children that walk and cycle up and down the hill had grown over the years and by formally lowering the speed limit the aim would be to prevent this type of incident as referred to above, or worse, occurring again.

There was a lot of support from within the community to mitigate the inherent danger presented by the volume of traffic travelling at 40mph along this road at present. Cumnor Parish councillors and our district and county councillors unanimously support this proposal and we are confident that this reduction in speed along the Cumnor Hill has the support of those who live within and neighbour the Parish, as well as those who travel through it given the 93% (332/358) who backed the consultation. Furthermore, a local petition had gained 1,859 signatures in support of a reduction to 30mph with a paper copy containing a further 305 signatures.

In urging that the proposal be supported he took the opportunity to ask that if funding could be found by Cumnor Parish Council to cover the cost of reducing the speed limit on the part of Oxford Road currently remaining at 40mph would the Cabinet Member see any issue that would prevent this stretch of road also being lowered to 30mph?

Following advice from officers that that would need further speed survey work and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 12