Agenda

Venue: Dean of Guild Court Room - City Chambers

Contact: Rachel Gentleman  Carolanne Eyre

Media

Items
No. Item

1. Order of Business

Additional documents:

1.1

Order of Business

Including any notices of motion and any other items of business submitted as urgent for consideration at the meeting.

Additional documents:

2. Declaration of Interests

Additional documents:

2.1

Declaration of Interests

Members should declare any financial and non-financial interests they have in the items of business for consideration, identifying the relevant agenda item and the nature of their interest.

Additional documents:

3. Deputations

Additional documents:

3.1

Deputations

If any.

Additional documents:

4. Minutes

Additional documents:

4.1

Minutes pdf icon PDF 333 KB

Minute of the Transport and Environment Committee of 12 October 2023 – submitted for approval as a correct record

Additional documents:

5. Forward Planning

Additional documents:

5.1

Work Programme pdf icon PDF 171 KB

Transport and Environment Committee Work Programme

Additional documents:

5.2

Rolling Actions Log pdf icon PDF 969 KB

Transport and Environment Committee Rolling Actions Log

Additional documents:

6. Business Bulletin

Additional documents:

6.1

Business Bulletin pdf icon PDF 327 KB

Transport and Environment Business Bulletin

Additional documents:

7. Executive Decisions

Additional documents:

7.1

Response to the Edinburgh Tram Inquiry pdf icon PDF 605 KB

Additional documents:

7.2

Travelling Safely Schemes pdf icon PDF 113 KB

Additional documents:

7.3

Public Toilets pdf icon PDF 185 KB

Additional documents:

7.4

Parking Permits for Places of Worship pdf icon PDF 150 KB

Additional documents:

7.5

Bus Lane Penalty Charge Levels pdf icon PDF 99 KB

Additional documents:

8. Routine Decisions

Additional documents:

8.1

Public Utility Company Performance and Road Work Co-ordination April 2022 to March 2023 pdf icon PDF 330 KB

Additional documents:

8.2

Granton Waterfront – Investigation of Parking Controls - Update pdf icon PDF 10 MB

Additional documents:

8.3

Communal Bin Review Update pdf icon PDF 1 MB

Additional documents:

8.4

Cleansing Performance Report pdf icon PDF 340 KB

Additional documents:

8.5

Implementing the new Parking Prohibitions pdf icon PDF 2 MB

Additional documents:

8.6

Supported Bus Services pdf icon PDF 837 KB

Additional documents:

9. Motions

Additional documents:

9.1

Motion by Councillor Davidson - Corstorphine Connections

By Councillor Davidson - Corstorphine Connections

“Committee:

1)       Unequivocally condemns those who have caused damage to elements of the Corstorphine Connections Project and believes all efforts should be made to bring those responsible to justice.

2)       recognises that such actions have been a result of a small minority of irresponsible individuals who do not represent the clear majority who have sought to engage in the project processes through formal and democratic means.

3)       believes many aspects of the project, such as wider footways and improved crossings, have worked well but that there remain many genuine and serious concerns around the new bus gate on Manse Road which has elicited strong local opposition ever since the original consultation.

4)       notes recent data which has shown that, in the first two months of operation, the bus gate resulted in over £100,000 in fines, suggesting significant confusion amongst the local community regarding the times of operation of the bus gate.

5)       notes that the ETRO process exists in order to provide a flexible process which allows for changes to be made in response to feedback and experience, and therefore agrees that the Manse Road bus gate should be removed from the project.”

 

Additional documents:

9.2

Motion by Councillor Heap - Westfield Street Parking

By Councillor Heap - Westfield Street Parking

A: Background

Committee notes:

1.   The roll-out of the Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) in Gorgie.

2.   That Westfield Street is an unadopted street in Gorgie just outside the zone.

3.   Residents of Westfield Street have had large numbers of parked vehicles in their street since the roll-out of the CPZ, causing significant difficulties for residents.

4.   Residents cannot obtain a Parking Permit as the street is not contained in a CPZ.

5.   That the Council has stated to some residents that Westfield Street is an area without parking restrictions, thus increasing parking pressure on the street.

6.   That residents living between 314 and 374 on the north side of Gorgie Road previously relied on Westfield Street for parking and are also excluded from permits at this time.

7.   The possibility that these problems may undermine support for the Strategic Parking Review which is necessary to address parking congestion and promote active and public travel.

B: Residents’ requests

Committee notes:

1.   That the parking congestion on Westfield Street, and also Westfield Road and Alexander Drive has been exacerbated since the introduction of the CPZ, and many affected residents support the immediate extension of the CPZ into those streets.

2.   That the residents, meeting on Thursday 2 November 2023 at the BMC club, Gorgie, made the following requests:

a.   Signage highlighting the private nature of the street to be erected.

b.   Affected residents should be allowed to apply for a Parking Permit to park in the existing Gorgie CPZ.

c.    The Council should stop stating that Westfield Street is a free parking area.

d.   Council should adopt the street and extend the CPZ to it.

e.   Council should expedite the extension of the CPZ to include Westfield Road and Alexander Drive.

C: Support for the motion

Committee notes:

1.   That this motion is supported by Ward 7 Councillors

2.   That this motion has been written in consultation with the residents

D: Actions

Committee reaffirms:

1.       Its support for the aims of the Strategic Parking Review? 

Committee requests:

1.       A business bulletin item for the December Committee meeting and a report for the January meeting of the Committee with recommendations on how best to:

a.       Address the concerns highlighted in Background, points 3-6

b.       Respond to the requests highlighted in Residents’ Requests point 2, a-e.”

 

Additional documents:

9.3

Motion by Councillor Aston - Skip Permits

By Councillor Aston - Skip Permits

“Committee:

1.      Notes that there is no requirement for a skip to be located close to a building site when an application for a skip permit is considered and that lack of proximity to a building site, house clearance, or other location as might reasonably need a skip is not currently a criterion which can be taken into account in determining such applications.

2.      Understands that this can mean there is scope for abuse of the system as it stands, with building waste being stored in skips for long periods on public roads in residential areas, effectively using the public carriageway as an informal builder’s yard, and this can have antisocial impacts on local residents.

3.      Requests a short report to the March Committee setting out options for seeking alteration of the criteria for determining applications for skip permits so that proximity to a building site, house clearance, or other location as might reasonably need a skip can be a matter that may be taken into account by the Council acting as Roads Authority. This may include writing to the Scottish Government or UK Government, as applicable, to request that the relevant legislation is amended.”

Additional documents:

9.4

Motion by Councillor Cowdy - Dog Fouling

By Councillor Cowdy - Dog Fouling

“Committee recognises:

1.      That all parties produced manifestos for the last Council election with an emphasis on improving street cleanliness, better enforcement, and upkeep of the public realm across the city. Dog fouling has long been an issue blighting the city with unacceptable, offensive, and unhygienic mess in the Public Realm including on pavements, parks, playparks, and sports grounds.

Notes:

2.      Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home suggests approximately 24% of the population own dogs with the number living in Edinburgh estimated at around 13,000 dogs and, whilst the vast majority of owners act responsibly, there remain a significant number who leave their dog’s foul on the ground or who do not properly dispose of their waste bags. Over the last 3 years there have been, on average, 1,288 Street Cleansing Dog Fouling requests each year. Over the last 6 years there have been, on average, 347 Street Enforcement Dog Fouling complaints each year.

Further Notes:

3.      The Dog Fouling (Scotland) Act 2003 (the “2003 Act”) makes it an offence for a person in charge of a dog not to clear away the excrement. The Act also enables local authorities to issue fixed penalty notices of £80 to offenders. In 2021, only four fixed penalty fines were issued by CEC reflecting the difficulties prosecuting under the current regime even though it only requires the evidence of one witness to justify a fine for dog fouling.

Further recognises:

4.      The number of dog fouling complaints raised by the public is low and mostly reflects apathy with lack of enforcement rather than concern about the problem.

Committee therefore:

5.      Calls for a report to be provided to Transport and Environment Committee within 4 cycles presenting options to help combat dog fouling that includes improving enforcement, the use of Fixed Penalty Notices, and the practicalities of establishing a Dog DNA register for the city, how it could be enforced, likely costs to set up and run, and how much might be funded through issuance of fines.”

Additional documents:

9.5

Motion by Councillor Munro - New Style Bus Trackers

By Councillor Munro - New Style Bus Trackers

Committee notes that the new style bus trackers being installed are causing concern and confusion to residents who rely on buses to get to school, work and appointments because they appear to display only the timetable rather than using GPS tracking to display real time information and therefore requests a briefing note to be provided as soon as possible giving the following information:

1.    Why, given the new screens were supposed to provide multi real time passenger information, this is not happening?

2.    Can the ‘due bus’ information be reinstated on the screen, rather than it disappearing. If this is possible, what would be the cost to undertake this, and how quickly could it be done?

3.    Who made the decision to take the ‘due bus’ information off the trackers and the reasoning behind this?

4.    Is data on an app based on real time GPS available to feed into the trackers (the report to F&R indicated this would be the case) – why do they appear to only show a question?

5.    Are the bus stop screens able to show a date?”

 

Additional documents:

Deputations pdf icon PDF 3 MB

Additional documents:

Motions and Amendments pdf icon PDF 2 MB

Additional documents: