Red Route is not an urban motorway
| Published: 8th October 2008 22:19 |
by Cllr Martin Mullaney
Moseley and Kings Heath ward councillor Martin Mullaney spoke to a packed public meeting to explain his ideas for cutting congestion and improving bus services in Moseley Village and Kings Heath High Street. His ideas, with support for a so-called Red Route, got a rough ride.
Here on AboutMyArea you can read more about his proposals in his own words...
Can I thank the B14 AboutMyArea for the opportunity to respond to its article on the recent Red Route meeting in Moseley.
The powerpoint presentation I used at this meeting can be seen here. Please check this out and view the two videos I also used during the evening. They are included below.
The myths
First of all, can I dispel two myths about a Red Route for the A435...
- the Red Route is NOT an urban motorway
- a Red Route would not remove the on-street parking in Moseley or Kings Heath
With regards to the public meeting held on Wednesday 1st October, I do need to provide some background.
I was invited to speak at this Forum meeting in what I thought was going to be a calm and rational environment to discuss how we could improve the number 50 bus service - of which Red Route would be part of that package. Instead Moseley Forum ran a ‘provocative' advertising campaign, claiming the plan was to run an urban motorway through central Moseley. The advert can be seen here.
As a result we had a packed meeting with people under the impression that a Red Route was another form of urban motorway. The presenters, including myself, didn't stand a chance. Whatever we said was not going to budge the image of an urban motorway. Instead of a sensible debate about public transport, we had instead a meeting where the audience looked for horns in our presentation to satisfy their urban motorway image. Simple things like cutting a disabled bay into an incredibly wide pavement (about 8 metres wide) by LA Fitness in Kings Heath to stop the traffic grinding to a halt, became an intolerable reduction in pavement space.
We even had the Chair of Kings Heath Forum announce that the problem with congestion on the A435 was not the cars themselves, but the buses. He then suggested the solution was to get rid of the buses.
A prominent Kings Heath shop keeper said that if any politician supported a Red Route along the A435 he would tell all his customers not to vote for them.
Particularly galling were known environmentalists in the audience arguing and voting against the Red Route. The fact that representatives of a bus company were there urging support for a Red Route so that there buses would be reliable at peak time, simply didn't register to them that a Red Route is there to improve public transport.
The importance of a Red Route along the A435
My personal stance is that if the residents don't want a Red Route, then I won't push it on them. However, to completely dismiss a Red Route without even looking at the evidence, I believe is a mistake.
As I said at the presentation, if we want to reduce congestion along the A435 and maintain it at that level for the next 20 years, then we need to make the number 50 bus an attractive alternative to the car. What people within the transport industry are telling me is that to achieve this requires three things: Red Route, bus priority measures and partnership working between the bus companies and the Council. You need all three things, not just one or two.
In Balsall Heath - there are major hold-ups caused here by vehicles illegally parked during peak times outside the Sikh Gurdwara and the local shops. There needs to be a major piece of work done here, so to provide off-street parking both for the Gurdwara and the local shops. It's not insurmountable, but requires alot of sensitive negotiation and the compulsory purchase of land for off street parking.
In Moseley shopping centre, the residents would most likely see no difference, other than the present yellow lines turning into red lines. No on-street parking would be lost. No trees cut down. No parking bays cut into the pavement.
What they would see:
- The pedestrian crossing potentially moved from outside the former Sage Wholefoods shop to the Chantry Road junction. This would free up space for more on-street parking.
- Loading bays in front of shops that presently do not have rear access for deliveries- eg Domestica, Prince of Wales pub, O'Neils pub, La Plancha
- On-street disabled bays - Moseley has none. Money would be spent to ensure easy disabled access to the shops from these bays
- Stronger enforcement of parking restrictions.
In Kings Heath shopping centre: No on-street parking would be lost. No trees cut down.
What they would see:
- A major rethink of pedestrian crossings and their locations. Are they in the right places?
- A major rethink of the bus stop locations. Are they in the right places?
- Introduction of loading bays for shops that do not have rear access for deliveries and double yellow lines in front of them. 90% of the shops along the High Street have provision for deliveries, without the need to park on double yellows. For the 10% that currently park on double yellows, we would negotiate the appropriate provision of parking bays.
- More on-street disabled bays.
- Stronger enforcement of parking restrictions.
With regards to the whole issue of traffic along Kings Heath High Street there is a need for residents to decide exactly what they want for this High Street.
If the residents of Kings Heath want the High Street to remain as it is - a permanent traffic jam from 12noon till 5pm - then they need to accept that through traffic will continue to and increasingly use Springfield Road, School Road, Billesley Lane and Avenue Road as de facto by passes.
If the residents of Kings Heath want less traffic using the side roads as de facto by passes, then there needs to be an increase in speed of the traffic along the High Street. I am not suggesting 40mph, not even 30mph, nor even 20mph, but a speed between now - zero mph - and something acceptable.
The impact of a Red route on businesses
The Kings Heath Business Association has made claims that a Red Route would adversely impact on their business. These fears originate from claims made by businesses along the Stratford Road Red Route.
I led a Council Scrutiny report on the impact of the Red Route on the Stratford Road. The conclusion we came to with regards to the businesses can be best summarised as follows:
- Parking restrictions along the Stratford Road though Springfield and Sparkhill had not been enforced for as long as anyone can remember. As a result, cars parked everywhere and anywhere, on double yellow lines, on pavements. This in turn lead to the local economy growing on this illegal parking. This could not go on.
- The Stratford Road Red Route introduced several off street car parks, plus extra on-street parking. The traders, despite their claims to the contrary, were never able to show one legal parking spot that was lost.
I accept that the Stratford Road traders probably saw a reduction in trade due to the loss of illegal parking. I believe any reduction was only slight. The traders never provided any evidence to back their claims of huge losses. Visits to the Stratford Road showed few empty shop units - there are more empty shop units in Moseley than in Sparkhill and Springfield combined - and a large number of businesses investing in their properties.
Conclusion
I would really urge residents to not dismiss an A435 Red Route. We do need to have a debate about congestion along A435. Maybe the outcome of that debate is that residents want the A435 to remain and become even more congested and for side roads to become by-passes. However, it's a debate we need to have now, otherwise opportunities for funding to ease the congestion and improve public transport will be lost.
"There are no Red Route plans"
Cllr Mullaney's council colleague pours cold water on red herring
Read more here...
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