THE CITY OF CARDIFF COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM: 4 CYNGOR DINAS CAERDYDD

Transcription

1 THE CITY OF CARDIFF COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM: 4 CYNGOR DINAS CAERDYDD ENVIRONMENTAL SCRUTINY COMMITTEE 11 th NOVEMBER 2014 ENFORCEMENT OF BUS LANES & OTHER MOVING TRAFFIC CONTRAVENTIONS MEMBER UPDATE Purpose of Report 1. To provide Members with an update on the implementation of the enforcement of bus lanes and other moving traffic contraventions. In doing this the report will consider the business case that has been developed by the Council and the actions which need to be taken to deliver the changes. Background 2. In summer 2010 Cardiff Council took on the responsibility for enforcing a range of parking contraventions. This now contributes directly towards the transportation policy objectives by addressing illegal parking which causes unnecessary congestion and traffic delays. 3. Since then the Council has enforced parking contraventions using its in house civil enforcement officers. Monitoring of certain indicators illustrates that illegal parking is reducing and some improvements to bus journey time have occurred. The Traffic Management Act 2004 also made provision for the enforcement of bus lanes and certain moving traffic contraventions, but those items had not at that time been enacted in Wales so the powers were not available. 4. In February 2013 the Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (General Provisions)(Wales) Regulations 2013 were passed and came into force on 25th March These regulations have enabled Councils in Wales to assume responsibility for enforcement of bus lane and some moving traffic offences, pursuant to Part 6 of the Traffic Management Act

2 5. The Council expressed an interest in adopting these new powers and developed a business case which was submitted to the Welsh Government in February This report provides a summary of the powers and the basis for Cardiff s business case. In doing this it highlights a number of important areas, including: How acquiring these additional powers will complement the current parking enforcement powers and will provide a greater resource to address traffic congestion; How deploying Council based enforcement will contribute further towards the transportation policy of encouraging travel by modes other than private car; That the financial projection is positive, such that annual operating costs will be covered and a surplus will be transferred into the reserve account for use on ringfenced transportation projects; Enforcement must be carried out via CCTV systems. Some of these cameras have already been purchased in anticipation of these new powers; That a new back office support team will be needed to process the moving traffic contraventions and to address incoming appeals. It is anticipated that this team will be fully funded by income from the penalty charges generated; Suggested timelines for implementing the transfer of the new legal powers. 6. By having access to these powers the Council will have the full suite of legal powers to control parking and travel along the highway. This will give the Council maximum control in terms of deploying its enforcement resource in support of its transportation policies, with the intention of assisting the movement of public transport and generally keeping traffic moving. 7. Specifically with regard to bus lanes, it is important to minimise illegal travel along them to ensure that public transport can gain maximum advantage from their provision on the highway. Usually, these illegal vehicles arrive at the end of the bus lane and queue back into the bus lane so causing delays to buses and thus eroding the intended advantage. 8. Enforcement of yellow box junctions is becoming ever more important because illegal queuing across the boxes (particularly during peak traffic flow times) can prevent other vehicle movements from taking place. This causes unnecessary congestion and delay to all affected motorists, both car borne and bus borne. There seems to be a growing impatience amongst drivers and a lack of understanding about the rule for entering yellow 2

3 box junctions; this problem appears to be getting worse such that enforcement and publicity are becoming ever more necessary. 9. In terms of public safety, in some places turning movement bans are being ignored and vehicles making these illegal turns are usually conflicting with a pedestrian crossing movement, putting pedestrians at risk. In other places, weak bridge restrictions are being ignored and bridges are being used by over-weight lorries. 10. As the above issues are traffic and highway matters it seems appropriate that the local highway authority should control this type of enforcement. This would allow resources to be deployed in accordance with the Council s transport policies and objectives. Range of Enforceable Contraventions 11. The Traffic Management Act 2004 indicates the range of road signs which will be enforceable under this new legislation, they are: a) Directed and Prohibited movements One way traffic Turn left (right if symbol reversed) Turn left ahead (right if symbol reversed) Keep left (right if symbol reversed) No right turn No left turn No U-turns 3

4 Give priority to vehicles from opposite direction No entry for vehicular traffic No vehicles except bicycles being pushed No motor vehicles No motor vehicles No buses (over 8 passenger seats) No motor bikes No goods vehicles over maximum gross weight shown (in tonnes) except for loading and unloading b) Pedestrian precincts Information signs Pedestrian Zone No vehicles except bicycles being pushed (except for loading by goods Vehicle). No motor vehicles between Monday & Saturday (except for loading by Goods vehicle between specified times). 4

5 As above except that waiting at any time is prohibited. A mixture of the symbols and restrictions noted on information signs in pedestrian zones. c) Bus and Cycle provisions Buses and cycles only Trams only Route to be used by pedal cycles only Segregated pedal cycle and pedestrian route Route to be used by pedal cycles and pedestrians With-flow pedal cycle lane Contra-flow cycle lane 5

6 d) Yellow Box Junctions An example of a Yellow Box Junction and its structure. 12. The formal application required that the Council included evidence of consultation with interested parties. To achieve the required timeframe a letter was issued in November 2013 to a number of significant consultees, these included: Cardiff Hoteliers SEWTA Cardiff International Arena S.C.O.I.D - Traffic Management Unit Cardiff Retail Partnership Sixty Sixty Coaches Cardiff University South Wales Fire & Rescue Service City Centre Churches St David's Centre City Centre Management St David's Hall City Sightseeing Ltd Stadium Events Liaision Group Coach Travel Wales Stagecoach South Wales Cyclists' Touring Club (CTC) Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) Easyway Minicoach Ltd Cardiff Metropolitan University 6

7 EST Coaches Veolia Transport Cymru including Bebb Travel Plc. Federation of Small Businesses Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust First Cymru South Wales Police Freight Transport Association Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) Islwyn Borough Transport Traffic Penalty Tribunal (TPT)/ PATROL-UK Licensees Forum Living Streets DVLA 13. The letter indicated that the Council was considering making an application for these powers and invited comments accordingly. The closing date for written responses was set as the 10th January All responses received during the consultation process were appended to the formal application. 14. In parallel with the application process, there were a number of legal and practical activities which have to be undertaken in order to adopt the new powers; these are listed below: Traffic Regulation Order Research & Conversion All existing moving traffic regulation orders which the Council intends to enforce will have to be catalogued and converted to allow enforcement under civil powers. This requires identifying the location of all appropriate Traffic Regulation Orders amongst the 6,000 to 7,000 records currently held. Once this is done Legal Services will need to publish an order listing their conversion. This will require a temporary staff resource from January 2014 onwards until completion of the project; Legal Services do not have sufficient resources to dedicate individuals to this task. The temporary provision of a legal officer and research assistant has been included as a set-up cost in the financial model. 7

8 Survey of Lines & Signs A survey of lines and signs will need to be undertaken to ensure that any enforceable locations comply with the requirements of the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions It is envisaged that the Council s Projects Design & Development Team will do this work and will arrange a contract for any work to be done to bring the lines and signs into compliance. Publicity Campaign - A publicity campaign will be required in advance of the new powers going live. This will raise public awareness of the planned enforcement activity. The Council s Media and Communications team carried out a very effective publicity campaign prior to the change in parking enforcement and they will be engaged again for this project. Camera Systems - Enforcement of bus lane and moving traffic contraventions can only be done by approved devices, i.e. camera and recording systems. In anticipation of these powers bus lane cameras were purchased two years ago; they are available for deployment. More sophisticated cameras will be needed to enforce yellow box junctions so the purchase of two appropriate cameras and support software will be necessary. These cameras can be moved from site to site so enforcement can be moved when contraventions tail off at a particular location. This will maximise the efficiency of CCTV enforcement operation. Notice Processing - The output from the approved camera systems is compatible with the Council s existing notice processing software. It will be necessary to create a number of standard document templates for use in the system. Recruitment - The contraventions arising from this new area of enforcement will need staff to carry out the back office processing. Two new enforcement officers will be needed to review the camera image files and ensure that the contraventions as detected are appropriate. For example, the bus lane cameras will refer to a white list of vehicle registration numbers of vehicles authorised to travel along bus lanes. However, ambulances on blue light calls will not be on that list and thus will be detected as potential contraventions. An operator will then need to delete those vehicles and prevent penalty charge notices being sent out. If they consider that a detected contravention is fair, such as a private car travelling along a bus lane, they will authorise the system to create a case file for a penalty charge notice to be sent 8

9 out by post, as the law requires. The creation of these penalty charges will require administrators to oversee the printing and postage, plus the scanning and attachment of subsequent appeals and challenges. Based on Cardiff s parking enforcement statistics over the last three years of operation, it is envisaged that around 25% of the penalty charges issued will return as challenges and appeals; a team will need to be created to cope with this work load. Recruitment of this staff resource is on the critical time line for the project as it is imperative to have the staff in post and trained prior to the go-live date. Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment (TUPE) - As the Police are currently responsible for enforcing these road signs, some staff might be eligible to transfer to the Council under TUPE arrangements, as was done with the previous parking scheme. Consultation will have to take place to see if any staff are affected and the views of South Wales Police obtained. Special Authorisation for Yellow Box Junctions - The layout of these box markings must conform to the diagrams contained within the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions The diagrams are based on idealised 90 degree intersecting roads and no permitted variants are included. In reality junctions occur in a variety of shapes and orientations, so it is expected that most box layouts do not conform precisely to the diagrams. It would be impractical to remove and relay them so a system of special authorisations from Welsh Government will be required and liaison with the approvals officer is already in progress. 15. When the business case was submitted to the Welsh Government it was anticipated that the powers would be available to the Council on the 1st July Unfortunately due to a number of outside factors the Council s business case was finally signed off by the Welsh Government in late October This has resulted in delayed implementation of the powers; it is now hoped that the new regulations will come into practice in early December

10 Financial Considerations 16. There are two aspects to the financial model to consider, these are: The volume of penalty charges plus subsequent income that is likely to arise from Council enforcement; The cost of running the operation. 17. Initial surveys have been undertaken at some of the sites likely to be the primary points of enforcement and these revealed the current level of contraventions observed over a 30 minute period. By applying factors, the number of contraventions per month expected at the start of enforcement can be calculated. It is known from other sources that this will rapidly drop away once enforcement commences and can drop to around 15 to 30% of its start value over a twelve week period. 18. The guidelines on the Level of Charges Order indicate that all moving traffic contraventions will have the same penalty charge, this being either 50 or 70. The Cardiff Council business case opted for a 70 value as part of its formal application, to be consistent with the penalty charge applicable to yellow line parking contraventions. 19. There will be some capital costs involved in setting up this enforcement operation, which are mainly acquisition of camera technology / hardware plus upgrading of lines and signs on site. An application for capital funding for this equipment has been submitted to cover these costs. Legal Background 20. The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (General Provisions)(Wales) Regulations 2013 (2013 No. 362) (hereinafter called the 2013 Regulations ) came into force on 25th March The 2013 Regulations enable the Council to assume responsibility for enforcement of road traffic contraventions, which in relation to Wales means: A parking contravention - this follows 'The Civil Enforcement of Parking Contraventions (City and County of Cardiff) Designation Order 2010'; A bus lane contravention - these contraventions are further described in the Traffic Management Act

11 21. These new enforcement powers are intended to allow Welsh local authorities to put in place effective traffic management and enforcement measures. The 2013 Regulations should be read in conjunction with: The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (Representations and Appeals)(Wales) Regulations 2013 (2013 No 359); The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (Representation and Appeals) Removed Vehicles (Wales) Regulations 2013 (2013 No361 W.43); The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (Approved Devices) ( Wales) Order 2013 (2013 no 360 W.42) and The Civil Enforcement of Traffic Contraventions (Guidelines on Levels of Charges) (Wales) Order The 2013 Regulations sets out the process for the issue and enforcement of penalty charge notices. It also provides for: The evidence-gathering through an approved device (see specific regulations on this) or evidence from the civil enforcement officer; The immobilisation of vehicles for parking contraventions; The use of income generated from penalty charge and the application of surplus income; The keeping of separate income and expenditure accounts for each type of contravention and; The appointment of appeal adjudicators by enforcement authorities. 23. The Council has developed a working knowledge of parking enforcement over the last three years. This means that operational risk for this project is relatively low in terms of setting up and operating the systems behind the scenes. Previous Scrutiny & Cabinet References 24. Introducing the enforcement of bus lanes and certain other moving traffic contraventions has been considered by the Council during On the 14 th January the Environmental Scrutiny Committee received a report titled Review of the Business Case for the Enforcement of Bus Lanes & other Moving Traffic Offences which briefed Members on 11

12 Cardiff Council s business case for receiving the new powers. Following the meeting a letter was sent to the Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning & Transport. A copy of the scrutiny cover report for this item and the letter provided in response to the presentation have been attached to this report as Appendices 1 & 2. The main points made in the letter were: That they were supportive of the Council s intention to assume responsibility for enforcement of bus lane and other moving traffic offences; They were encouraged that the areas they highlighted as pinch points within the city were the same as those already identified by Council officers; They recognised that enforcement in pinch point areas will eventually lead to improved traffic flow across the city; They understood that the scheme will be at least cost neutral, and could generate income to the Council. Members recognised that income generation is a by-product of the enforcement with the primary focus being reductions in congestion; They asked for an update on the enforcement of this legislation at a Committee Meeting in late It was felt that this should focus on the reduction in congestion achieved as a result of the Council implementing the new powers; Members asked for a copy of the business case and financial information relating to the enforcement of the legislation when it becomes available; That communication should emphasise the benefits to the transport network rather than the relevant financial penalties and charges. Members requested that the communication plan and results of the public consultation should be shared with the Committee. 25. A report titled Civil Parking Enforcement Enforcement of Bus Lanes & Certain other Moving Traffic Contraventions was received at Cabinet on the 29 th January The report considered the business and policy case as to why the Council should apply to the Welsh Government for the new powers. A copy of the Cabinet report is attached to this report as Appendix Following the Cabinet item it was resolved that: The business case described in the report and the attached financial model set out in Appendix 3 to the report were approved; 12

13 That an application should be made to the Welsh Government for an order to be made to designate Cardiff (the whole of the administrative area, with the exception of the M4, trunk roads and high speed dual carriageways) as a civil enforcement area for bus lane and moving traffic contraventions; Authority be delegated to the Director (Strategic Planning, Highways, Traffic and Transportation) to carry out all measures necessary to give effect to the proposals set out in this report, including, inter alia ; preparation of the detailed application to the Welsh Government consulting with the South Wales Police regarding the proposed transfer of any affected staff, carrying out all requisite consultation, instructing the Council's Legal Services to revoke and make traffic orders as required to facilitate the introduction of civil parking enforcement. Liaison with PATROLUK, the statutory body providing the independent adjudication service, to determine whether any amendments to the current contractual arrangements are required and to effect any such changes, and this applies equally to other statutory bodies, such as DVLA and the County Court system. The implementation of a public information and consultation strategy to support the introduction of civil enforcement for these particular moving traffic contraventions is approved. Equalities Impact 27. The enforcement of this range of contraventions will apply to all motorists equally and, therefore, is not anticipated to impact negatively on any specific group of our citizens. Indeed, by improving traffic flow and safety there should be benefits generally across all road users. Way Forward 28. Councillor Ramesh Patel (Cabinet Member for Transport, Planning & Sustainability) and officers from the Strategic Planning, Highways, Traffic & Transport Directorate have been invited to attend to give a presentation and to answer Members questions on the new powers for the enforcement of bus lanes and other moving traffic contraventions. 13

14 29. The meeting will provide the Environmental Scrutiny Committee with the opportunity to scrutinise and comment on the implementation of the powers for enforcement of bus lanes & other moving traffic contraventions. Any comments and observations made will be sent to the Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning, Highways, Traffic & Transportation for his consideration. Legal Implications 30. The Scrutiny Committee is empowered to enquire, consider, review and recommend but not to make policy decisions. As the recommendations in this report are to consider and review matters there are no direct legal implications. However, legal implications may arise if and when the matters under review are implemented with or without any modifications. Any report with recommendations for decision that goes to Cabinet/Council will set out any legal implications arising from those recommendations. All decisions taken by or on behalf of the Council must (a) be within the legal powers of the Council; (b) comply with any procedural requirement imposed by law; (c) be within the powers of the body or person exercising powers on behalf of the Council; (d) be undertaken in accordance with the procedural requirements imposed by the Council e.g. Scrutiny Procedure Rules; (e) be fully and properly informed; (f) be properly motivated; (g) be taken having regard to the Council's fiduciary duty to its taxpayers; and (h) be reasonable and proper in all the circumstances. Financial Implications 31. The Scrutiny Committee is empowered to enquire, consider, review and recommend but not to make policy decisions. As the recommendations in this report are to consider and review matters there are no direct financial implications at this stage in relation to any of the work programme. However, financial implications may arise if and when the matters under review are implemented with or without any modifications. Any report with recommendations for decision that goes to Cabinet/Council will set out any financial implications arising from those recommendations. RECOMMENDATIONS The Committee is recommended to: 14

15 Consider the information in the report, appendices and provided at the meeting; Decide whether they would like to make any comments to the Cabinet; Decide the way forward for any future scrutiny of the issues discussed. MARIE ROSENTHAL County Clerk and Monitoring Officer 5 th November

16 CARDIFF COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM: 6 CYNGOR CAERDYDD ENVIRONMENTAL SCRUTINY COMMITTEE: 14 th JANUARY 2014 REVIEW OF THE BUSINESS CASE FOR THE ENFORCEMENT OF BUS LANES & OTHER MOVING TRAFFIC CONTRAVENTIONS Purpose of report 1. To brief Members on Cardiff Council s business case for receiving new powers to deal with the enforcement of bus lanes and other moving traffic contraventions. Background 2. In summer 2010, Cardiff Council took on the responsibility for enforcing a range of parking contraventions. This now contributes directly towards the transportation policy objectives by addressing illegal parking which causes unnecessary congestion and traffic delays. 3. Since then the Council has enforced parking contraventions using its in-house civil enforcement officers. Monitoring of certain indicators illustrate that illegal parking is reducing and some improvements to bus journey time have occurred. The Traffic Management Act 2004 also made provision for the enforcement of bus lanes and certain moving traffic contraventions, but those items had not at that time been enacted in Wales so the powers were not available. 4. In February this year, The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (General Provisions)(Wales) Regulations 2013 were passed and came into force on 25th March These regulations enable the Council to assume responsibility for enforcement of bus lane and some moving traffic offences, pursuant to Part 6 of the Traffic Management Act The Council has expressed an interest in adopting these new powers. This report provides a summary of the powers and the basis for Cardiff s business case. In doing this it highlights a number of important areas, including: 1

17 a) How acquiring these additional powers will complement the current parking enforcement powers and will provide a greater resource to address traffic congestion; b) How deploying Council based enforcement will contribute further towards the transportation policy of encouraging travel by modes other than private car; c) That the financial projection is positive, such that annual operating costs will be covered and a surplus will be transferred into the reserve account for use on ringfenced transportation projects; d) Enforcement must be carried out via CCTV systems. Some of these cameras have already been purchased in anticipation of these new powers; e) That a new back office support team will be needed to process the moving traffic contraventions and to address incoming appeals. It is anticipated that this team will be fully funded by income from the penalty charges generated; f) How a draft timeline could see the new arrangements becoming operational by July 2014; this is subject to Welsh Government approval and transfer of the legal powers. 6. Over the last three years the Council has developed a good working knowledge of delivering parking enforcement, therefore, the operational risk for developing this type of project is relatively low, i.e. it has experience of setting up and operating the necessary systems. 7. The Council hopes to have the new enforcement of bus lanes and moving traffic conventions in place by the July The proposal and supporting business plan will be presented to the Environmental Scrutiny Committee for consideration on the 14 th January It will then be presented to at the Cabinet meeting on the 16 th January 2014 for approval. Should the Cabinet approve this proposal then the business case will be provided to the Welsh Government who will take approximately five months to assess the application. Obviously such projects can experience delays in implementation, however, it is anticipated that as long as the powers are approved by the autumn that it will make a positive financial contribution during the 2014/15 financial year. 2

18 8. The public consultation started during December 2013 and it is due to end in mid January At the time of writing this report it was not possible to provide details of the public consultation exercise. Comments and observations from the Environmental Scrutiny Committee will form a part of the consultation process. It is anticipated that the public consultation exercise will support the principle of reducing traffic congestion, however, there may be adverse feedback in terms of the Council gaining more income from motorists via penalty charges. It is expected that the new proposals will receive support from South Wales Police who will probably welcome being relieved of the burden of enforcing these activities. Range of Enforceable Contraventions 9. The Traffic Management Act 2004 indicates the range of road signs which will be enforceable under this new legislation, they are: a) Directed and Prohibited movements One way traffic Turn left (right if symbol reversed) Turn left ahead (right if symbol reversed) Keep left (right if symbol reversed) No right turn No left turn No U-turns Give priority to vehicles from opposite direction No entry for vehicular traffic No vehicles except bicycles being pushed 3

19 No motor vehicles No motor vehicles No buses (over 8 passenger seats) No motor bikes No goods vehicles over maximum gross weight shown (in tonnes) except for loading and unloading b) Pedestrian precincts Information signs Pedestrian Zone goods No vehicles except bicycles being pushed (except for loading by Vehicle). No motor vehicles between Monday & Saturday (except for loading by Goods vehicle between specified times) As above except that waiting at any time is prohibited. A mixture of the symbols and restrictions noted on information signs in pedestrian zones. c) Bus and Cycle provisions Buses and cycles only Trams only 4

20 Route to be used by pedal cycles only Segregated pedal cycle and pedestrian route Route to be used by pedal cycles and pedestrians With-flow pedal cycle lane Contra-flow cycle lane d) Yellow Box Junctions An example of a Yellow Box Junction and it s structure Justification for Adopting the New Powers 10. By having access to these powers, Cardiff Council will have the full suite of legal powers to control parking and travel along the highway. This will give the Council maximum control in terms of deploying its enforcement resource in support of its transportation policies, with the intention of assisting the movement of public transport and generally keeping traffic moving. 11. Specifically with regard to bus lanes, it is important to minimise illegal travel along them to ensure that public transport can gain maximum advantage from their provision on the highway. Usually, these illegal vehicles arrive at the end of the bus lane and queue back into the bus lane so causing delays to buses and thus eroding the intended advantage. 5

21 12. Enforcement of yellow box junctions is becoming ever more important because of illegal queuing across the boxes, particularly during peak traffic flow times. This can prevent other vehicle movements from taking place causing unnecessary congestion and delay to all affected motorists. There seems to be a growing impatience amongst drivers and a lack of understanding about the rule for entering yellow box junctions; this problem appears to be getting worse, meaning that enforcement and publicity are becoming more necessary. 13. In terms of public safety, in some places turning movement bans are being ignored and vehicles making these illegal turns are usually conflicting with a pedestrian crossing movement; this puts pedestrians at risk. In other places, weak bridge restrictions are being ignored and bridges are being used by over-weight lorries. 14. As the above issues are traffic and highway matters it seems appropriate that the local highway authority should control this type of enforcement. This would allow resources to be deployed in accordance with the Council s transport policies and objectives. Application to the Welsh Government 15. If the Cabinet approves the business case for implementing the enforcement of bus lanes and other moving traffic the Council will proceed by submitting an application for the relevant powers to Welsh Government. The Welsh Government has set out a pro-forma for this, which is similar to the document used for the 2009 parking powers application. The powers applied for would cover the whole of Cardiff s administrative area, i.e. all roads except for high speed dual carriageways. This would be consistent with the current parking enforcement coverage. 16. Welsh Government has indicated that it requires a minimum of five months to process a formal application though its own legal administrative cycle. Subject to approval of this report a formal application could be submitted to Welsh Government in February 2014, leading to likely implementation in the summer of

22 Preparations in Parallel 17. The formal application requires that the Council includes evidence of consultation with interested parties. To achieve the timeframe mentioned above, at the end of November 2013 a letter was sent out to a number of significant consultees, these included: Cardiff Hoteliers SEWTA Cardiff International Arena S.C.O.I.D - Traffic Management Unit Cardiff Retail Partnership Sixty Sixty Coaches Cardiff University South Wales Fire & Rescue Service City Centre Churches St David's Centre City Centre Management St David's Hall City Sightseeing Ltd Stadium Events Liaision Group Coach Travel Wales Stagecoach South Wales Cyclists' Touring Club (CTC) Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) Easyway Minicoach Ltd Cardiff Metropolitan University EST Coaches Veolia Transport Cymru including Bebb Travel Plc. Federation of Small Businesses Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust First Cymru South Wales Police Freight Transport Association Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) 7

23 Islwyn Borough Transport Traffic Penalty Tribunal (TPT)/ PATROL-UK Licensees Forum Living Streets DVLA 18. The letter indicated that the Council is considering applying for these powers and invited comments accordingly. The closing date for written responses was set as 10 th January. All responses received during the consultation process will be appended to the formal application. 19. In parallel with the application process itself, there are a number of legal and practical activities which will need to be undertaken in order to adopt the new powers. If the Cabinet decides to approve the business case for implementing the enforcement of bus lanes and other moving traffic conventions them it will immediately need to start work on delivering these activities. The sub-projects which will need to be set up and progressed are listed below: Traffic Regulation Order Research & Conversion All existing moving traffic regulation orders which the Council intends to enforce will have to be catalogued and converted to allow enforcement under civil powers. This requires identifying the location of all appropriate Traffic Regulation Orders amongst the 6,000 to 7,000 records currently held. Once this is done Legal Services will need to publish an order listing their conversion. This will require a temporary staff resource from January 2014 onwards until completion of the project; Legal Services do not have sufficient resources to dedicate individuals to this task. The temporary provision of a legal officer and research assistant has been included as a set-up cost in the financial model. Survey of Lines & Signs A survey of lines and signs will need to be undertaken to ensure that any enforceable locations comply with the requirements of the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions It is envisaged that the Council s Projects Design & Development Team will do this work and will arrange a contract for any work to be done to bring the lines and signs into compliance. 8

24 Publicity Campaign - A publicity campaign will be required during June 2014 to raise public awareness of the planned enforcement activity. The Council s media and Communications team carried out a very effective publicity campaign prior to the change in parking enforcement and they will be engaged again for this project. Camera Systems - Enforcement of bus lane and moving traffic contraventions can only be done by approved devices, i.e. camera and recording systems. In anticipation of these powers bus lane cameras were purchased two years ago; they are available for deployment. More sophisticated cameras will be needed to enforce yellow box junctions so the purchase of two appropriate cameras and support software will be necessary. These cameras can be moved from site to site so enforcement can be moved when contraventions tail off at a particular location. This will maximise the efficiency of CCTV enforcement operation. Notice Processing - The output from the approved camera systems is compatible with the Council s existing notice processing software. It will be necessary to create a number of standard document templates for use in the system. Recruitment - The contraventions arising from this new area of enforcement will need staff to carry out the back office processing. Two new enforcement officers will be needed to review the camera image files and ensure that the contraventions as detected are appropriate. For example, the bus lane cameras will refer to a white list of vehicle registration numbers of vehicles authorised to travel along bus lanes. However, ambulances on blue light calls will not be on that list and thus will be detected as potential contraventions. An operator will then need to delete those vehicles and prevent penalty charge notices being sent out. If they consider that a detected contravention is fair, such as a private car travelling along a bus lane, they will authorise the system to create a case file for a penalty charge notice to be sent out by post, as the law requires. The creation of these penalty charges will require administrators to oversee the printing and postage, plus the scanning and attachment of subsequent appeals and challenges. Based on Cardiff s parking enforcement statistics over the last three years of operation, it is envisaged that around 25% of the penalty charges issued 9

25 will return as challenges and appeals; a team will need to be created to cope with this work load. Recruitment of this staff is on the critical time line for the project as it is imperative to have the staff in post and trained prior to the go-live date. Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment (TUPE) - As the Police are currently responsible for enforcing these road signs, some staff might be eligible to transfer to the Council under TUPE arrangements, as was done with the parking scheme before. Consultation will have to take place to see if any staff are affected and the views of South Wales Police obtained. Special Authorisation for Yellow Box Junctions - The layout of these box markings must conform to the diagrams contained within the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions The diagrams are based on idealised 90 degree intersecting roads and no permitted variants are included. In reality junctions occur in a variety of shapes and orientations, so it is expected that most box layouts do not conform precisely to the diagrams. It would be impractical to remove and relay them so a system of special authorisations from Welsh Government will be required and liaison with the approvals officer is already in progress. 20. Based on the timelines and work which needs to be undertaken to implement enforcement of bus lanes and other moving traffic conventions, should the Cabinet approve the business case it is anticipated that the go-live date will be the 1 st July However, this projection is based upon the earliest possible start date. There are factors outside of the Council s control which could impact on the implementation date, for example, the time taken by the Welsh Government to process the application. For this reason it should be recognised that slippage could occur. Financial Considerations 21. There are two aspects to the financial model to consider, these are: The volume of penalty charges plus subsequent income that is likely to arise from Council enforcement; The cost of running the operation. 10

26 22. Surveys have been undertaken at some of the sites likely to be the primary points of enforcement and these revealed the current level of contraventions observed over a 30 minute period. By applying factors, the number of contraventions per month expected at the start of enforcement can be calculated. It is known from other sources that this will rapidly drop away once enforcement commences and can drop to around 15 to 30% of its start value over twelve weeks or so. 23. The guidelines on Levels of Charges Order indicate that all moving traffic contraventions will have the same penalty charge, this being either 50 or 70. Cardiff Council will apply for a 70 value as part of its formal application, to be consistent with the penalty charge applicable to yellow line parking contraventions. 24. There will be some capital costs involved in setting up this enforcement operation, which are mainly acquisition of camera technology/ hardware plus upgrading of lines and signs on site. An invest to save bid has been submitted to cover this cost. 25. During this item officers from the Strategic Planning, Highways, Traffic & Transport Directorate will provide Members with an overview of the business case and financial model for the enforcement of Bus Lanes and other moving traffic offences. Recruitment 26. In order to run this enforcement operation, additional staff will be required, as the parking operations staff are running at full capacity and cannot take on additional work of this magnitude. It is important to have these staff in place one month before the go-live date so that they can be trained to address the notice processing work and also the appeals which will inevitably arise. Hence preparations for recruitment will need to commence early and run in parallel with the formal application to the Welsh Government. This will provide an opportunity for staff in the redeployment pool to seek potential transfer into this operation. 27. As the enforcement of moving traffic contraventions currently rests with South Wales Police, they will need to be approached to see if any of their staff require transfer to the Council under the TUPE provisions. This was carried out successfully in 2010 with the creation of Cardiff s parking enforcement team, when the majority of the 11

27 Traffic Wardens transferred to the Council operation. Early consultation with South Wales Police will also be necessary. Legal Background 28. The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (General Provisions)(Wales) Regulations 2013 (2013 No. 362) (hereinafter called the 2013 Regulations ) came into force on 25 th March The 2013 Regulations enable the Council to assume responsibility for enforcement of road traffic contraventions, which in relation to Wales means any of the following: A parking contravention. The Council has been enforcing parking contraventions following The Civil Enforcement of Parking Contraventions (City and County of Cardiff) Designation Order 2010 ; A bus lane contravention; These contraventions are further described in the Traffic Management Act These new enforcement powers are intended to allow Welsh local authorities to put in place effective traffic management and enforcement measures. The 2013 Regulations should be read in conjunction with: The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (Representations and Appeals)(Wales) Regulations 2013 (2013 No 359); The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (Representation and Appeals) Removed Vehicles (Wales) Regulations 2013 (2013 No361 W.43); The Civil Enforcement of Road Traffic Contraventions (Approved Devices) ( Wales) Order 2013 (2013 no 360 W.42) and The Civil Enforcement of Traffic Contraventions (Guidelines on Levels of Charges) (Wales) Order The 2013 Regulations sets out the process for the issue and enforcement of penalty charge notices. It also provides for: 12

28 The evidence-gathering through an approved device (see specific regulations on this) or evidence from the civil enforcement officer; The immobilisation of vehicles for parking contraventions; The use of income generated from penalty charge and the application of surplus income; The keeping of separate income and expenditure accounts for each type of contravention and; The appointment of appeal adjudicators by enforcement authorities. Way Forward 31. Members may wish to consider whether there are any issues or comments on this item which they would like to pass on to the Cabinet. Members may also wish to consider if there is any additional work that the Committee needs to undertake. Legal Implications 32. The Scrutiny Committee is empowered to enquire, consider, review and recommend but not to make policy decisions. As the recommendations in this report are to consider and review matters there are no direct legal implications. However, legal implications may arise if and when the matters under review are implemented with or without any modifications. Any report with recommendations for decision that goes to Cabinet/Council will set out any legal implications arising from those recommendations. All decisions taken by or on behalf of the Council must (a) be within the legal powers of the Council; (b) comply with any procedural requirement imposed by law; (c) be within the powers of the body or person exercising powers of behalf of the Council; (d) be undertaken in accordance with the procedural requirements imposed by the Council e.g. Scrutiny Procedure Rules; (e) be fully and properly informed; (f) be properly motivated; (g) be taken having regard to the Council's fiduciary duty to its taxpayers; and (h) be reasonable and proper in all the circumstances. Financial Implications 33. The Scrutiny Committee is empowered to enquire, consider, review and recommend but not to make policy decisions. As the recommendations in this report are to consider and review matters there are no direct financial implications at this stage in 13

29 relation to any of the work programme. However, financial implications may arise if and when the matters under review are implemented with or without any modifications. Any report with recommendations for decision that goes to Cabinet/Council will set out any financial implications arising from those recommendations. RECOMMENDATIONS The Committee is recommended to: 1. Take account of the information received at the meeting, and; 2. Report any comments to the Cabinet for their consideration. Marie Rosenthal County Clerk and Monitoring Officer 8 th January

30 Ref: NS/PM/GH/ th January 2014 Councillor Graham Hinchey, Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning & Transport, County Hall, Atlantic Wharf, Cardiff, CF10 4UW. Dear Councillor Hinchey, Environmental Scrutiny Committee 14 th January 2014 On behalf of the Environmental Scrutiny Committee I would like to thank you and the officers for attending the Committee meeting on Tuesday 14 th January As you are aware the meeting considered Review of the business case for the enforcement of bus lanes & moving traffic contraventions and a position paper on Metro Proposals and implications for Cardiff. This letter sets out the comments and observations of Members in relation to the parts of these topics which fall within your portfolio of responsibility: Review of the business case for the enforcement of bus lanes & moving traffic contraventions The Committee is pleased with, and supportive of, the Council s intention to assume responsibility for enforcement of bus lane and other moving traffic offences as set out in the presentation given. Members were encouraged that the areas they highlighted as pinch points within the city centre within their questioning, where traffic is held up by motorists blocking yellow box junctions, are the same as those that have already been identified by Council officers. Members recognise that enforcement in such areas will eventually lead to improved traffic flow across the city. Members heard that enforcement of this legislation will support the 1

31 objectives of other Council initiatives, namely Keep Cardiff Moving and the Transport Strategy within the Cardiff Local Development Plan. Members were informed that it is anticipated that the enforcement of bus lanes contraventions and other moving traffic contraventions will be at least cost neutral, and could generate income to the Council. The Committee recognises, however, that income generation is a by-product of the enforcement of this legislation, with the primary focus being improvements in traffic flow and reductions in congestion across the city. With this in mind, the Members request an a update on the enforcement of this legislation at a future Committee Meeting in late 2014, with a particular focus on the reduction in congestion that has resulted from the Council implementing these powers. Members also request that they are provided with the business case and financial information relating to the enforcement of this legislation when it becomes available. Members noted that the implementation of this legislation will require a clear communication of changes to motorists in Cardiff. It was felt that this communication should emphasise the benefits to the transport network rather than the relevant financial penalties and charges. Members request that the communication plan for this initiative be shared with the Committee, and that the results of the public consultation exercise are similarly shared with the Committee when they become available. Position Paper on Metro Proposals and implications for Cardiff The Members of the Committee were pleased to note the long term vision of this project and the commitment it displays to supporting the development of the Cardiff Capital Region. They recognise that the full completion of this project will take many years and considerable funding to undertake, but feel that it is imperative that this initiative is completed. Members noted that the Metro proposals have been developed to tie in with the Cardiff Local 2

32 Development Plan and the potential development sites identified within it, and will help address the transport requirements of the wider City Region. The Committee recognises that, in the North-west corridor in particular, the tram-train options seem to be a leading solution in that alignments can be more flexible and the rapid stop and start operation of tram-trains offer a far greater range of station location options. It was noted that alignment options, even at this early stage, may impact upon existing housing estates. Care needs to be taken to minimise any planning blight along those alignments at all stages of the process. Members were pleased that Cardiff Council is pushing ahead and taking a lead on this initiative, having upfront discussions with key developers, the Welsh Government and neighbouring local authorities. The Committee looks forward to receiving future updates on this subject. I would be grateful if you would consider the above comments and provide a response to the requests made in this letter. Regards, Councillor Paul Mitchell Chairperson Environmental Scrutiny Committee 3