Agenda item

This report provides a response to the motion presented by Cllr Whitcroft at the 19 September 2024 Council meeting, entitled “Reforming Residents’ Priority parking in York”. The motion was adopted by the Council.

The recommendations aim to streamline the ResPark process where possible and support the implementation of the Council’s Transport Strategy.

Resolved:   To approve

a)     The following changes to the process for the ResPark waiting list and of the decision to proceed to statutory consultation:

                                                              i.     ResPark requests which are not submitted through a petition will be added to the waiting list by officers. An Executive Member decision will only be required where ward members and/or officers are opposed to the request being added to the waiting list. Once a proposal reaches the top of the waiting list, the first informal consultation will be undertaken without the need for a public decision; and

                                                             ii.     Once the informal consultation has concluded, the decision to initiate the statutory consultation stage will be made by a senior officer (published Officer Decision). This will apply unless ward members and/or officers are opposed to the scheme progressing to statutory consultation. In these cases, the decision will be made by the Executive Member at a decision session.

b)     Changes to the informal consultation process so that it can be linked to the implementation of the wider Council’s Transport Strategy by consulting residents and businesses on options for alternative uses of kerbside space in their area/street if a ResPark scheme is implemented, to provide alternative kerbside uses and activities (such as car club cars, cycle hangers, providing more space pedestrians, cyclists, or buses, or planting trees, or retrofitting sustainable urban drainage solutions).

c)      Changes to the way officers consider the responses to the informal consultation to inform their recommendations, by removing the current officer guidelines (where 50% response rate and 50% of responses received in support are usually required for officers to recommend that the proposed scheme progresses to the statutory consultation stage).

Officers’ recommendations on whether to proceed with a proposed scheme will be based on the applicable legal framework (see below), the Council’s adopted policies and strategies, and a qualitative review of the feedback and objections received through the consultation process.

The Executive Member also noted that officers would aim to implement and encourage the use of digital tools for engagement and consultation, retaining the options of letters and emails to ensure that the process remains inclusive.

Reason:      To respond to the motion presented by Cllr Whitcroft at the 19 September 2024 Council meeting, entitled “Reforming Residents’ Priority parking in York”, streamline the ResPark process where possible, and support the implementation of the Council’s Transport Strategy.

The Head of Highway Management presented the report, explaining that it was written in response to a motion presented to council in September 2024, and focused on the process by which Resident Rarking (ResPark) was introduced and implemented. She explained that the report aimed to streamline this process, looking at different options to make the process as efficient as possible.

She explained that the recommended option introduced more officer decisions in advance of the statutory consultation process; widened consideration of other users of the highway when consulting residents and removed the guideline whereby officers have hitherto required a 50% response and 50% support threshold, instead looking at how the proposed strategy would align with local circumstances and the wider transport strategy.  It also proposed increased use of digital tools for consultation to increase efficiency when analysing responses.

The Executive Member thanked officers for the work undertaken on the report and Cllr Whitcroft for introducing the motion. She acknowledged that this was a legal process, and there was ultimately a limit to how much it could be streamlined.

She recognised that there was currently a backlog of 2-4 years for ResPark requests to reach implementation and that under the current rules, given the number of rental properties and holiday lets in the city, it was virtually impossible for a 50% response rate to be achieved and for officers to thereby recommend Res Park options.

She noted that though the transport strategy had been approved last summer, the current system still did not allow opportunities to enhance neighbourhoods and use curbside space in ways beneficial to the community (e.g. cycle storage, bus lanes, pavement cafés).

She stated that this proposal allowed a broadening of possibilities for what can be done with ResPark; emphasising the need to increase accessibility, reduce car dependency and create healthy spaces.

She asserted that in approving this scheme, the council would still involve full consultation with the community, residents would still have their say, but the implementation process would be streamlined and frustration reduced in allowing residents to shape their neighbourhood.

Resolved:   To approve

a)     The following changes to the process for the ResPark waiting list and of the decision to proceed to statutory consultation:

                                                              i.     ResPark requests which are not submitted through a petition will be added to the waiting list by officers. An Executive Member decision will only be required where ward members and/or officers are opposed to the request being added to the waiting list. Once a proposal reaches the top of the waiting list, the first informal consultation will be undertaken without the need for a public decision; and

                                                             ii.     Once the informal consultation has concluded, the decision to initiate the statutory consultation stage will be made by a senior officer (published Officer Decision). This will apply unless ward members and/or officers are opposed to the scheme progressing to statutory consultation. In these cases, the decision will be made by the Executive Member at a decision session.

b)     Changes to the informal consultation process so that it can be linked to the implementation of the wider Council’s Transport Strategy by consulting residents and businesses on options for alternative uses of kerbside space in their area/street if a ResPark scheme is implemented, to provide alternative kerbside uses and activities (such as car club cars, cycle hangers, providing more space pedestrians, cyclists, or buses, or planting trees, or retrofitting sustainable urban drainage solutions).

c)      Changes to the way officers consider the responses to the informal consultation to inform their recommendations, by removing the current officer guidelines (where 50% response rate and 50% of responses received in support are usually required for officers to recommend that the proposed scheme progresses to the statutory consultation stage).

Officers’ recommendations on whether to proceed with a proposed scheme will be based on the applicable legal framework (see below), the Council’s adopted policies and strategies, and a qualitative review of the feedback and objections received through the consultation process.

The Executive Member also noted that officers would aim to implement and encourage the use of digital tools for engagement and consultation, retaining the options of letters and emails to ensure that the process remains inclusive.

Reason:      To respond to the motion presented by Cllr Whitcroft at the 19 September 2024 Council meeting, entitled “Reforming Residents’ Priority parking in York”, streamline the ResPark process where possible, and support the implementation of the Council’s Transport Strategy.