Speeding on White Rose Lane
I recently held a meeting with people who live in the properties at the bottom end of White Rose Lane towards the junction with Old Woking Road. Residents have been campaigning for additional measures to reduce the speed of traffic coming into Woking from the east of the borough. Although White Rose Lane already has a number of speed reduction features built in, the numerous blind curves, the narrowness of the road and the lack of a proper footpath beyond the Jack & Jill steps makes it a particularly treacherous route for pedestrians.
Earlier in the year residents submitted a petition to Surrey County Council calling for the introduction of a 20mph speed limit. Unfortunately, that proposal was not accepted on the grounds that very few roads in Woking have such a low limit.
My County Council colleague Liz Bowes and I are currently working with officers to explore what could be done to install a footpath which would run from Toad Hall in White Rose Lane to the corner of Old Woking Road. There are, however, a number of obstacles which need to be looked at carefully. There are uncertain land ownership issues, with part of the highway and pavement being owned by Woking Borough Council, other parts being owned by Surrey County Council, and others being privately owned by residents. There is also the lack of a consensus in favour of a footpath, with some residents being strongly opposed. The fact that this part of White Rose Lane is so narrow also presents logistical difficulties, and, even if a solution can be found, there are a lot of demands on the highways budget and the project will need to compete with other areas which are also looking for funding.
As a first step, Councillor Bowes and I have arranged a meeting between White Rose Lane residents Surrey County Council officers Alan Milne and Keith Patching, to take place on Tuesday 16th June. The purpose of this meeting will be to identify ownership of the land running along White Rose Lane and to discuss ways in which we can either reduce speeding along the road or make pedestrian access safer. Separately to this, I have also contacted Serco and asked them to carry out remedial work on the shrubbery between Toad Hall and the White Rose Lane Nature Reserve so the road can be made easier to navigate for those walking along this route.
Once this meeting with highway officers has been held we will be able to decide the next best steps. I will continue to keep residents updated and ensure they are a part of the discussion.
Woking Community Safety Plan
At last week’s meeting of the Overview & Scrutiny Committee, councillors received a report from the Safer Woking Partnership on their Community Safety Plan for the borough. The Community Safety Plan is a strategy drawn up by the police, local authorities and other interested organisations with the aim of identifying priorities for combating crime and disorder over the next three years.
The strategy highlighted four areas where the police will be focusing their attention. The first priority is anti-social behaviour. The second is violent crime and burglary, which includes domestic abuse and child sexual exploitation. The third area is drugs and alcohol abuse, and more will be done to provide awareness sessions and counselling, as well as concentrating on issues around the night time economy. The fourth strand of the strategy relates to a broader goal of reducing re-offending by placing greater attention on the most prolific offenders, as well as providing targeted assistance where necessary.
During the meeting I asked a number of questions, including how the partnership intends to work with the Licensing Committee, which has responsibility for regulating night time entertainment in the borough and can take action against premises found to be contributing to crime and disorder. I also asked whether the focus on child sexual exploitation was driven by the national attention on high profile cases in towns like Bradford and Rotherham, or whether it was the result of intelligence about local activity. Finally I asked about whether there needed to be a focus on other aspects of the strategy such as preventing violent extremism, highlighting that early intervention was often the best way of countering radicalisation before it develops into criminal activity.
I was impressed with the evidence by the representatives from Surrey Police and the Safer Woking Partnership and felt that a lot of thought and consultation had gone into producing the strategy. Residents who want more information about policing in their area, including the latest crime statistics, can find out more information on the Woking Police website.
Rail Capacity
I am often contacted by residents complaining about the quality of service from South West Trains. As a commuter I understand how frustrating the overcrowding can be on the early morning services, as well as the frequent disruption and ongoing signalling problems which have caused a lot of journeys to be delayed or cancelled since the New Year. A recent survey has shown that only 40% of rail users are happy with the performance of South West Trains, while the company’s management has admitted that more needs to be done to improve customer satisfaction.
With that in mind, I am pleased that Woking’s MP, Jonathan Lord, has taken up the issue of rail capacity with the Department of Transport. In a series of Parliamentary Questions, Jonathan has asked about the expected increase in passenger numbers from Woking to Waterloo over the next few years, and questioned Ministers on what additional capacity will be put in place to cope with the extra demand. Jonathan has also pressed the Government to examine in more detail some of the logistical questions that will need to be looked at if we are to increase capacity through the use of double decker trains.
The Government has said that the number of passengers on the route to London will almost double by 2050 and so serious investment is needed if our rail infrastructure is not become unaffordable or grind to a halt. The Overview & Scrutiny Committee has previously called in representatives from South West Trains to examine the barriers to bringing in extra capacity, including longer coaches and more frequent services during rush hour periods. There is some good news in that a further 100 refurbished carriages with 2,900 more seats are due to be introduced in the next few years.
Another frequent complaint involves passengers who take cycles onto peak hour trains and block seats for other rail users. Currently, passengers are forbidden from taking non-folding cycles onto trains due to arrive into London between 7am and 10am. However, this is often ignored and the guards are reluctant to challenge anyone who flouts the rules. I would encourage anyone who encounters a non-folding cycle taking up three or four seats on a crowded or peak service to report it directly to South West Trains through their Twitter account in the hope that it will encourage a more stringent enforcement of the policy.
Temporary location announced for new Hoe Valley School in Woking Park
The temporary location for the new Hoe Valley School has been announced and agreed by the Executive. The plan is for the school to operate out of interim accommodation in an area adjoining Woking Park. The school will open to pupils from September and move to a permanent location in South Woking after two years.
The establishment of Hoe Valley School is a fantastic achievement by residents and parents who have put in a great deal of time, effort and their own resources to help meet the education needs of children in Woking. The borough is short of school places, particularly in South Woking where there has been a great deal of new housing development in the last few years. Particular credit is due to the head teacher Penny Alford and the project coordinator Claerwyn Hamilton-Wilkes. I wish them well in their endeavours and am confident the school will be a success.
There have been concerns raised by residents in the areas immediately around the park such as Constitution Hill and Poplar Grove that temporarily locating the school in the park will create noise disturbance and disruption to traffic flows, particularly on Kingfield Road. However, I am confident that every effort will be made to ensure disruption is kept to a minimum. I look forward to working with the school and residents and seeing both sides engage in dialogue to iron out any issues that may emerge.