Air quality management changes...

Readers may well already be aware that B&NES Council has invited residents to comment on the above.


Full details of the Consultation Documents may be obtained through this link.

A member of the Newbridge Matters team has sent the following letter to the B&NES Council and, we urge readers to consider the consultation documents and submit their comments.

You will see from the letter that only one of the many aspects of the consultation has been covered, that of providing air pollution monitoring equipment on sites not already covered.  This applies to the present Park and Ride Car Park here in Newbridge.

Any comments must be submitted by 31^st January 2012 to:

Bath and North East Somerset Council

Environmental Monitoring

Environmental Services

FREEPOST (BA1458)

Bath

BA1 1ZZ

Letter sent by a member of our team referred to above:

Consultation on Changes to the Bath Air Quality Management Area

7^th    January 2012

The vast amount of information you have provided in your Consultation Documents takes a considerable amount of time to read and comprehend and, so far I have been unable to complete the task.

However at this stage, may I make just one point which is that from the information at present available, further air monitoring action must be taken.

It would seem that the present levels of air pollution at sites not at present monitored, are either not known at all or, values have been obtained from ‘modelling’, these being considered insignificant compared with present day knowledge of the levels of air pollution causing problems with the health of various sections of the population.

I am sure you would agree, that had we known more about air pollution at the time the Royal Victoria Park Children’s Play Area was constructed immediately adjoining the A4 Upper Bristol Road here in Bath, it would not have been sited in this position.  I appreciate the large cost that would be involved in moving the play equipment to a much more suitable site, possibly within the park but, surely human life cannot be measured in terms of money.  I request that very serious thought be given to re-siting this play area, which is used by many thousands of young children every year, not only from Bath but from outlying areas, without delay.

May I suggest that monitoring stations be set up at all schools and their playing fields, hospitals, park and ride car parks and other commercial locations where large numbers of vehicles congregate within the B&NES area, so that definite information may be made available on air pollution levels.

It may well be possible to encourage those responsible for these sites to receive detailed information from the Council on the method of collecting this pollution information and, for them to forward the samples obtained to you.

As far as schools are concerned, this method of collecting the required information could well be included within the normal school curriculum, making children aware of the dangers of air pollution.  This could be done in a similar way to that which many of them already provide weather information to the National Weather Bureau but, in this case the samples would be returned to you for analysis.

Such a system would then provide real data on many of these additional sites at no additional cost to the Council, other than the initial cost of providing the sampling equipment and instruction on the retrieval of the samples.

I hope that these initial comments will be taken into consideration when you assess the results of your consultation period, which ends on 31^st January 2012.

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We hope readers will respond to the Consultation Documents with their own views on this very important issue.

In the money!

Readers will no doubt be aware from press reports and BBC TV News bulletins, that the Government has approved the revised Bath Transport Package submitted to the Department for Transport [DfT], by B&NES Council.

This revised Package includes a 250 space extension to the park and ride at Newbridge the exact position of which is still a mystery, despite repeated requests over the last few months for information.

We have made numerous enquiries as to its location without success, being advised that the information was not available until the Newbridge Meadows Village Green application had been settled.

The Village Green has now been approved by B&NES and the area registered as a Village Green, details being shown in The Commons Register.

Both our Ward Councillors, Cllr Caroline Roberts and Cllr Loraine Morgan Brinkhurst, together with our MP the Rt Hon Don Foster, have stated on many occasions, that the car park site originally proposed north of the river, was not suitable.

We are now actively engaged in drawing attention to many promises of consultation by Councillors and our MP, so that appropriate meetings are held in order to obtain a car park site acceptable to the residents of Newbridge.

We wait with breath held for the long awaited, and oft requested, details.

Royal name for Village Green?

From the previous posting, readers will be aware that the Newbridge Meadows have now been granted ‘Village Green’ status.

For those interested, the action taken following this ruling may be found in the Commons Register.

We again thank all those who have supported us in our endeavours to bring about this situation, thereby securing continued use of the Meadows for lawful sports and pastimes.

As reported in the previous posting, a request has been submitted to B&NES Council for the Meadows to be re-named ‘Queen Elizabeth II Fields’ in order to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, marking 60 years on the throne in 2012.

Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, the Queen’s grandson, is Patron of the scheme for the ‘Queen Elizabeth II Fields’ and, we have been advised that our request has been placed before the Council’s Cabinet for consideration.

We will, of course, keep you advised as this matter proceeds.  

B&NES grants approval for Newbridge Meadows Village Green status

In April 2010, an application was submitted to B&NES Council by a representative of ‘Newbridge Matters’, an organisation set up to enhance and protect the area of Newbridge, in full co-operation with the Ward Councillors, for the Newbridge Meadow Fields to be registered as a Town or Village Green.
The application was considered to be valid and a Non-Statutory Public Inquiry was held in The Guildhall in April 2011, after which the Inspector holding the Inquiry issued a report recommending that the two large Meadow Fields and the Corridor between them, be Registered as a Village Green.

A meeting of B&NES’s Regulatory (Access) Committee was held in The Guildhall on Tuesday 25th October 2011 to consider the Inspector’s report and, after hearing from their Senior Rights of Way Officer who recommended that as all requirements under Section 15 of the Open Spaces Act 2006 were satisfied, as detailed by the Inspector, he recommended that the two large Meadow Fields and the Corridor between them, be Registered as a Village Green.

The Committee resolved to accept the report and Register the area accordingly. (Please see plan below, click on image to enlarge.)

The meeting was attended by the applicant, another member of ‘Newbridge Matters’, a member of The Bath Society and Councillor Loraine Morgan-Brinkhurst, one of the Ward Councillors, all of whom spoke in favour of Registration.
Also in attendance were members of the public including children and Ward Councillor Caroline Roberts, who had supported the application.

Now that the Meadows have been registered, they will be protected from future development so that present and future generations may continue to enjoy their use, for leisure and environmental purposes.

The Committee was advised that next year, 2012, marks the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, sixty years on the throne and, that in order to celebrate the occasion her grandson Prince William, now the Duke of Cambridge, has as Patron set up a scheme to protect Playing Fields and Outdoor Spaces. If areas of land conformed to criteria set down under this scheme, these areas could be named ‘Queen Elizabeth II Fields’.

The owners of the land, in the case of Newbridge Meadows being B&NES, would if they so desired, be able to request that the name ‘Queen Elizabeth II Fields’ be applied to the Meadows, in a similar way to that for Bath’s ‘Royal Victoria Park’.

A formal request will be made to B&NES in due course for this action to be taken.

Village Green meeting

We have just been advised that the Inspector’s Report following the Non-Statutory Public Inquiry held in April 2011, will be referred to the Regulatory Access Committee of B&NES Council, which will meet on Tuesday 25th October 2011 at 10.00am in the Council Chamber in The Guildhall, Bath.

The Inspector has recommended that the two large fields and the narrow corridor between them, forming the Meadows, be registered as a Town or Village Green.

Any member of the public may attend but if they wish to speak at the meeting, then due notice will need to be given in accordance with the standing regulations, details of which may be obtained from the Council’s Democratic Services Officer, Mr Jack Latkovic, telephone 01225 394452 or e-mail jack_latkovic@bathnes.gov.uk.

A member of the Newbridge Matters team will attend and speak at the meeting and, anyone who gave support for Newbridge Meadows to be registered as a Town or Village Green who wishes to attend, will be made most welcome.

Time for celebration?

Finally some good news!

At last we have received the Inspector’s report on our Village Green application, following the Public Inquiry held in April. He has recommended that most of the Newbridge Meadows land contained within the Village Green application, some of which was previously earmarked for the park and ride extension, be registered as a Village Green. The Inspector has excluded the area immediately bounding the north eastern side of the existing Car Park, known as the ‘bund,’ from his recommended registration area. We await clarity as to the precise parts of the application covered by his recommendation.

We have been granted a period of time to consider and comment upon the Inspector’s report ending on 22nd September 2011 and, we are actively considering the report at this time.

A final report from the Inspector, if the present one is modified, will be submitted to the Authority's Regulatory (Access) Committee in due course, for their approval or rejection. At that stage, we will know the specific area of land, if any, on the Meadows that has been registered as a Village Green.

The local Ward Councillors have assured us that the planned extra car parking spaces will not be built near to any of our houses. However, as yet they have been unable to tell us where exactly they will be placed. This is quite worrying as the new proposals have to be submitted to central government by 9th September.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who supported us with written and verbal witness statements for the Public Inquiry – we couldn’t have done it without you.

For now we are cautiously optimistic and muted celebrations are in progress!

Update...

Readers could be forgiven for thinking that we at Newbridge Matters had packed our bags and gone away for a long holiday.    Not true…..we have been very busy working with residents, friends, visitors, supporters and Councillors to ensure that everything possible is being done to keep Newbridge a safe and pleasant area in which to live, work and play.  

Apart from the very important fact that the Bath and North East Somerset [B&NES] Council is now controlled by the Lib Dems instead of the Conservatives, knowledge of which readers will no doubt have gained from the local press and radio, there has been very little until now concerning Newbridge, to post on this website.

Bath Transportaion Package - [BTP]

Although the new Lib Dem Councillors have made dramatic changes to the original BTP, these changes were only finally approved by the Council at their meeting on Thursday 14^th July 2011.

These changes include the omission of the proposed New Road from Brassmill Lane to Windsor Bridge Road, part of which would have passed through private gardens and other privately owned areas and, apparently the omission of the proposed Park and Ride [P&R] Car Park on Bathampton Meadows.

The omission of the New Road has been a great relief to those in private properties who have suffered terribly from the potential of losing their gardens with really monstrous construction works on their door-steps and until now, the prospect of being unable to sell their properties privately if they so wished.

Likewise, the apparent omission of the Bathampton Meadows Car Park on a beautiful area east of Bath, will be if never constructed, welcomed by many.

Also included in these changes is the proposed P&R Car Park at Newbridge, where instead of a 500 space Car Park, it is now proposed that a 250 space Car Park be provided instead.

At this point in time it is not known where this Car Park will be sited but, we have been told that the Council is actively seeking an alternative site to that originally proposed.    The original site for the expansion for 500 spaces was on land to the north east of the present Car Park.

At the Council meeting held on 14^th July, Councillors promised ‘consultation’ on any Car Park site selected and, we will be actively pressing for ‘consultation’ to take place as soon as possible.   

A comprehensive BTP scheme, including any Car Park for Newbridge, for the Best and Final Bid for Grant Money, must be submitted to the Department for Transport [DfT] by 9^th September 2011.

If no Grant Money becomes available, no doubt the Council will have to consider further if they have sufficient finances to construct the Car Park.

Newbridge Meadows Village Green

As reported in an earlier posting, the Public Inquiry into the Newbridge Meadows Village Green was held on 11^th, 12^th and 13^th April 2011.

We are still waiting for the Inspector’s recommendations as to whether the Meadows should be ‘Registered.’

The Public Inquiries into the Village Greens at Rudmore Park and Kaynton Mead took place in May and June respectively and, we anticipate that the Inspector may make known his recommendations on all three Village Greens in the near future.

Newbridge Matters received support from the R2R Group for the Meadows Inquiry for which we are most grateful.     We in turn supported the Rudmore Park and Kaynton Mead Inquiries.

As previously posted, any recommendations from the Inspector will be submitted to an appropriate committee of the Council, for it to accept or reject.

We will of course advise you further when the Inspector’s recommendations are received.

Appreciation

Newbridge Matters appreciates very much indeed all the support for the benefit of Newbridge that has been given to us by residents, visitors, friends, the Response 2 Route [R2R] Group, Councillors and our many friends and organizations on the east of the city, during the time we have existed.