Agenda item

5.1

The Committee received the following question from a member of the public who attended the meeting to raise it:-

(a)  Bridget Kelly

When is the deadline for applications to the Parish Council elections?

In response, the Chair noted that Sheffield City Council’s local elections would take place on 4 May, 2023, and that the timescales for the parish council elections would be the same. He advised that Andrew Towlerton, Clerk of Ecclesfield Parish Council, would be in contact with Ms Kelly directly to explain the process.

The Committee received the following questions from members of the public who were not in attendance at the meeting and had submitted questions prior to the meeting, which the Chair read out:

(b)  Megan Smith, Chairperson, Grenoside Conservation Society

We are very concerned about the traffic and roadside parking on Woodhead Road Grenoside near the car park for Wheata, Greno and Wharncliffe Woods. 

There are 2 serious issues with traffic and parking.

1.    This area has become very popular, especially with the mountain biking community.  This means that at weekends there are a lot of large vehicles using the area which park on the roadside when the car park and laybys are full.  This often means that it is very difficult to see to cross the road and is very dangerous for young families, dog walkers, horse riders and cyclists.  It also makes it difficult for other road users as cars, cyclists and pedestrians have to weave through the parked cars in single file.

2.    The other problem with the stretch of road that includes the car park is that it is very straight for about quarter of a mile and there is no speed restriction, so when there are no parked cars traffic can drive up to 60 mph which makes crossing the road or exiting the car park very dangerous.

We are aware that there have been discussions with the police already but this has not materialised in any obvious signs or improvements to the road.  We have also tried asking SCC directly but was told that it would not be a priority unless there was an incident to raise it up the list. 

This situation has been going on a long time now and we feel that the lack of action on this is unacceptable. We do not want to wait for a serious accident to happen before it is addressed.

We would very much like your help with this.

The Chair agreed to forward the details to Highways and the local policing team for a full response.

In response, Councillor Julie Grocutt advised that in Stocksbridge and Upper Don, funding was used to set up a speed survey to get accurate data, and suggested that Ward Councillors might want to try this option. Residents had complained about speeding, and the survey data has shown there was no speeding and that it was public perception. She noted that implementation of a 30mph speed limit would be costly and might not have the desired effect of reducing speed. She added that where there were cars parked, it was drivers responsibility to drive to the condition of the road. Sheffield City Council had the authority to update signage, however it was the responsibility of South Yorkshire Police to enforce speeds. Councillor Grocutt suggested that talks with South Yorkshire Police regarding enforcement could be an option.

Councillor Mike Levery added that the car park had been outgrown by the number of people visiting Grenoside Woods, and queried how parking could be improved.

Councillor Craig Gamble Pugh advised that he had been contacted by East Ecclesfield residents regarding setting up a traffic campaign group. He agreed to contact the residents to see if they would be interested in looking further afield while looking for solutions to speeding problems.

The Chair noted that there were two main concerns: one was the amount of cars parked on the A61 adjacent to the car park at weekends, and the other was speed limits that were contradictory to the 50mph speed limit. He suggested that signage to cross the road could be an option.

Councillor Penny Baker had also experienced issues around speed limits on some roads in Stannington, and that referrals had been made to the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee as appropriate.

Andrea Hatcher, an Ecclesfield resident, added that she regularly visited Grenoside Woods with her children, and agreed that speeding on the A61 was a problem. She believed that it would be useful to have speed deterrents, and noted that although there were speed bumps on the road through Grenoside village, there were none on the stretch of road near Grenoside Woods.

Tim Whitaker, an Ecclesfield Councillor and cyclist, had visited Grenoside Woods and Wharncliffe Woods that day. He noted that the woods had excellent mountain biking routes that were well known, and that people travelled from miles around to visit. He believed that the car park was not big enough for the amount of visitors to the area.

(c)  Dennis Patton

I have a couple of questions about the quality of the Amey road "repairs".

1.    Why are many of the roads deteriorating so fast?

2.    When will they be repaired to a decent standard of longevity?

The Chair advised that a full response had been received from Amey, which would be sent to Mr Patton and would be published on Sheffield City Council’s website.

Councillor Levery added that the recent spells of cold weather had caused cracks in the road, followed by wet weather which had allowed water ingress. He advised that Amey carried out emergency repairs and follow up work. He noted that surface water was also a problem and a challenge on some roads.

The Chair referred to responses received for two public questions raised at the North Local Area Committee of 18 January, 2023, and advised that the responses would be added to Sheffield City Council’s website.