Issue - meetings

To agree the response to be made to Highways England with respect to their consultation on improvements to the A31 at Ringwood.

Cllrs Ford, J D Heron and Rippon-Swaine disclosed non-pecuniary interests as members of Ringwood Town Council which was involved in negotiations on the proposals under consultation.  Cllr E J Heron disclosed a non-pecuniary interest as a member of Hampshire County Council which was a party to the proposals, and also on the grounds that he lived close to the A31 in Ringwood.  They each concluded that there were no grounds under common law to prevent them from remaining in the meeting to speak and to vote,

RESOLVED:

That the letter of support set out at Appendix 2 to Report Item 5 to the Cabinet, be sent to Highways England in respect of their consultation on improvements to the A31.

Cllrs Ford, J D Heron and Rippon-Swaine disclosed non-pecuniary interests as members of Ringwood Town Council which was involved in negotiations on the proposals under consultation.  Cllr E J Heron disclosed a non-pecuniary interest as a member of Hampshire County Council which was a party to the proposals, and also on the grounds that he lived close to the A31 in Ringwood.  They each concluded that there were no grounds under common law to prevent them from remaining in the meeting to speak and to vote,

The Cabinet considered the response to be made with respect to Highways England’s consultation on proposals to improve the A31 at Ringwood between the A338/B3347 (Ringwood) and the B3081 (Verwood) junctions. 

The proposal contained a number of elements including the addition of a third lane along the A31 westbound and the closure of the West Street access to the A31.  While there were some concerns about the limited scale of the measures on offer and that some more fundamental causative issues were being left unaddressed, Members concluded that, in a time of financial constraint it was important to be realistic about the scope of what could be achieved within the budget available, in order to achieve some improvement.  Members considered that this Council should support proposals that would improve traffic flows in this area and encourage Highways England to work closely with local communities, in particular Ringwood Town Council, to achieve the best possible scheme.  At present congestion levels were growing, with a detrimental effect on businesses throughout the District, because of the importance of this strategic route to the West Country and the regional airports.  In addition, local people were increasingly diverting their journeys onto smaller forest roads, affecting the environment and increasing the risk of animal accidents.

The Cabinet encouraged the public and interested parties to respond to Highways England’s consultation.

RESOLVED:

That the letter of support set out at Appendix 2 to Report Item 5 to the Cabinet, be sent to Highways England in respect of their consultation on improvements to the A31.