13 HGV SIGNS

Please see the details  and locations of 13 new HGV Signs . The parish council is committed to reducing the impact of HGV's in our community.

Please note that ALL Highways matters are now dealt with via a Highways Improvement Plan that has to be agreed between the parish council and KCC Highways.

A Highway Improvement Plan (HIP) is a method whereby KCC will consult with Parish Councils to create a plan for highway improvements in a parish area. The idea is for the Parish Council to list their ideas for improvements in priority order with as much information as possible to allow KCC officers to then investigate the ideas initially as a desk top study and then be able to discuss the ideas a little more in depth.

The benefit of this approach is that there is then an agreed document setting out the various schemes and the recommended action going forward.

 KCC have no specific allocation of funding for a HIP, with any funding for a scheme having to enter a bidding process within KCC. Therefore, it is very likely that there will be no, or limited, funding available from KCC. KCC see it as an opportunity to work with Parish Councils with the potential for possibly jointly funding projects or looking to Parishes to fund a scheme possibly in conjunction with the local KCC Member and his grant fund.

Background:

Traffic Implementation Group (TIG) progress has been very slow against our Alkham Parish Council (APC) agreed schedule, set back in late 2018 and continuing into 2019. It was only in Nov 2019, after more than a year of a lack of response from KCC to APC correspondence that APC tried a different approach and were able to get support from our ward councillor and local MP, both appreciating Alkham residents traffic concerns and lack of progress towards resolution. Additional advice from the cabinet member for transport, who was in receipt of a copy of the Traffic Action Group (TAG) report, was received following his involvement by our MP. KCC were also requested to provide both the cost and feasibility of possible measures detailed in the TAG report.   

The overall outcome has been KCC offering out a Highways Improvement Plan (HIP) initiative to the PC as an opportunity to try and get TAG priorities delivered. The TIG team were involved in the consultation process with APC and the team views and comments were reported back.

The next step was for APC to review the complete report from KCC and discuss and decide the best way forward for the negotiating APC team. The complete report would have includes the traffic survey data collected by KCC, which was anticipated to be available early Spring 2020. That data will be crucial in determining the best way forward for the submitted APC HIP.

However, the covid pandemic and subsequent lockdowns have meant that that several initiatives have been delayed. One of these is the traffic survey. The survey will now take place once the current covid restrictions are lifted.

APC are currently negotiating the submitted draft HIP directly with the KCC Scheme Planning and Delivery Team.

Vision Zero Draft Strategy _2050

KCC are consulting on our draft five year Road Safety Strategy for Kent and our 30 year vision. 

Our ambitious 'Vision Zero' aims for zero, or as close as possible, fatalities on Kent’s roads each year by 2050. 

To achieve Vision Zero, we propose adopting the ‘Safe Systems’ approach, which is rooted in the belief that every traffic death reflects a failure in the system, and that none are acceptable. Safe Systems puts the human being at its core, accepting that even the most conscientious person may make a mistake at some point.

The goal of Safe Systems is to ensure that these mistakes do not lead to a crash or, if a crash does occur, it is sufficiently controlled to not cause a death or a life-changing injury.

The success of this strategy will depend on engagement with Kent’s communities to work together towards safer roads, towns and villages.

Alkham Parish Council has taken part in the consultation, which has now closed.