Agenda item

Local Transport Plan

To receive the report of the Corporate Director Place.

Decision:

Resolved:

That Cabinet:

1) Endorses the draft Local Transport Plan (LTP4) 2025 – 2038;

2) Authorises the Director of Highways and Transport, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Transport and Assets, to formally consult on LTP4 for a period of at least 6 weeks;

3) Delegates authority to the Director of Highways and Transport, in consultation with Director for Legal and Governance and the Cabinet Member for Transport and Assets, to make any necessary minor changes to the document before it is published for consultation in October 2024;

4) Notes that following assessment of all feedback from the formal consultation a final draft of the LTP4 will be presented to Cabinet for adoption.

Reason for Decision:

To ensure the Council continues to make progress in updating LTP4, aligned to the Local Plan Review.

Minutes:

Cllr Tamara Reay, Cabinet member for Transport and Assets presented a report seeking endorsement of the draft Wiltshire Local Transport Plan (LTP4) 2025-2038 and publish it for consultation.

Cllr Reay explained that the LTP4 is a statutory document covering the period from 2025 to 2038 setting out the Council’s strategic objectives and policies. The implementation and delivery of policies in the document will contribute to maximising opportunities and tackling the challenges currently facing Wiltshire.

Cabinet noted that LTP4 shows a commitment from the Council to take action to deliver wide-ranging improvements for cleaner, healthier and safer transport across the county, particularly challenging in a rural county where many residents are reliant on the private car for a wide range of journeys. It has been developed to meet the needs of residents, businesses and visitors, seeking to balance a range of competing and sometimes conflicting objectives, whilst at the same time remaining ambitious about the contribution transport in Wiltshire can make to national and regional objectives.

Six public questions were received for the meeting and these were included in the published agenda supplement together with written responses prior to this meeting.

Supplementary questions were received from:

Colin Gale asked if there was likely to be an announcement about the LTP4 consultation at the Pewsey Area Board meeting on 25 November 2024. Cllr Reay explained that an announcement would be made at that meeting, this was confirmed by Cllr Kunkler, Chairman of the Pewsey Area Board.

Cllr Graham Wright, Chairman of the Climate Emergency Task Group, reported that he was disappointed that the Task Group had not been invited to comment on the draft LTP4 prior to considering it on 14 November 2024.

Cllr Jerry Kunkler, Chairman of the Environment Select Committee reported that the Select Committee will consider the draft LTP4 at their meeting on 14 January 2025, although he was disappointed that the Select Committee had not considered the document earlier.

The Leader highlighted that the draft LTP4 document will continue to evolve over the coming months, taking into account comments raised during the consultation. He acknowledged the points raised by Cllr Wright and Cllr Kunkler about the need for earlier consultation with the Task Group and Select Committee. Cllr Reay confirmed that input from both the Task Group and Select Committee is very important and their input during the coming months is valued and welcomed.

Cllr Ian Thorn, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group, welcomed the report and looking forward to the outcome of the consultation process being reported back to a future Cabinet meeting, especially taking into account the role of Area Boards in providing information about the consultation, timescales and how all residents would be informed of the consultation. He indicated that the LTP4 required a very specific delivery due to the rural nature of the county. Cllr Reay confirmed that the consultation had been extended by a couple of weeks taking into account the Christmas period, that all 18 Area Board will receive information about the consultation and how residents will be engaged in the process, and the role of the Communications Team in reaching out to all residents.

Cllr Budden welcome the proposals and commented on the consultation process, including information at Area Board meetings, Parish and Town Council input and the need to increase the consultation timescale by at least one month. Cllr Reay confirmed that Parish and Town Councils will receive information about the consultation and have the ability to respond within the current timescales. The Leader reminded members that larger settlements had different challenges and opportunities that don’t exists in smaller villages.

Cllr Foster suggested that a strategic car parking plan is essential and should be included in the LTP4. He highlighted that some residents living in rural communities don’t drive and rely heavily on public transport. Cllr Reay explained that issues relating to parking would be considered in more detail during the production of delivery plans, and mentioned the success of DRT in the Pewsey Vale area and the potential to target other areas in the County..

Cllr Jackson also referred to the success of DRT in the Pewsey Vale and the potential for it to be rolled out more widely. He also highlighted the important role of volunteer drivers, the use of taxi vouchers in the delivery of public transport and the cost of bus stops. Cllr Reay confirmed that the Climate Emergency Task Group and Environment Select Committee would be consulted further on the LTP4 following the public consultation.