Conway Street Summary of Consultation Responses

Issue raised during consultation

Assessment

Lack of tree planting

In all of the Street Life schemes undertaken, tree planting is incorporated where possible. In the case of Conway Street, however, the amount of space between the buildings is extremely limited and the space available is being used to provide pavements of a minimum adequate width for pedestrians, whilst maintaining a carriageway of minimum width

Relocation of disabled spaces adversely affecting people with disabilities access to banks and Liberation Square area

To secure the provision of parking for the disabled that is in closer proximity to the banks in Library Place and to Liberation Square than those spaces currently proposed (in Hope Street and Dumaresq Street) the scheme is to be amended to provide two disabled spaces in Broad Street and two at the Esplanade, involving the loss of two 20 minute and two one hour ‘regular’ on-street spaces.

If car parking space is to be lost it should be disabled spaces, not ‘regular’ on-street spaces

In accord with States strategic objectives relating to the requirement to provide for the needs of an ageing population it is considered appropriate to ensure that the current level of parking provision within the town centre is maintained for people with disabilities to ensure that they are best able to maintain their independence and reach the facilities that they need.

Loss of on-street car parking spaces affecting ability to:

The States has determined that greater priority should be given to pedestrians in the heart of the town centre. This will inevitably involve the reallocation of limited road space and there will be adverse implications for vehicular town centre access relative to that presently enjoyed, principally in terms of the availability of central on-street parking provision. And if the principle of ensuring that those least able to access town centre facilities (i.e. the disabled) are given priority for town centre parking is upheld, it follows that any loss of town centre on-street space will adversely affect public short-stay spaces. The ability to ‘nip-in’ to the heart of the town centre will thus be reduced. It is relevant to note, however, that the loss of on-street public parking spaces as a result of this revised scheme amounts to approximately 10 spaces (six from Conway Street and two each from Broad Street and the Esplanade) but that there remains availability in town centre multi-storey car parks (particularly Sand Street and Pier Road) and that the level of on-street edge of town centre parking was increased by 70 spaces in 2005.

The concern of business being able to service its town centre premises from short-stay on-street parking spaces is considered potentially misplaced and misleading: business premises should be serviced and serviceable from the town’s delivery bays and business is able to use these for the purpose of servicing their premises by displaying the name of the business, delivery address and time of use in vehicles using them for genuine servicing operations (as opposed to informal staff parking).

Service bays exist in Broad Street and Library Place and provision is being made for deliveries as part of the Conway Street scheme. It is recognised that these town centre service bays are heavily used and require regular policing. To ensure a greater availability of service bays, the scheme will be amended such that the delivery bay to be provided in Conway Street be available for use throughout the day rather than its use being limited to part of the day, as originally proposed.

Phasing of pedestrian lights on Rue de la Liberation should give greater priority to pedestrians

Giving greater priority to pedestrians will seriously affect the movement of traffic on this major arterial route, with implications for congestion and pollution. On balance, it is considered that this should not be amended.

The capacity of the central island of this crossing is to be enlarged in order to accommodate greater numbers of pedestrians and cyclists.

Pedestrian crossings should be provided;

Traffic speed in Conway Street will be calmed by the introduction of table-top crossings. The crossings themselves, together with shorter crossing distances (because the road is narrowed) should make it easier to cross the street. This situation already exists in Broad Street. The existing pedestrian crossing here, at the junction of Bond Street and Broad Street, also provides gaps in the traffic to enable pedestrians in other parts of the area to cross. On this basis, additional formal crossing facilities are not considered justifiable.

There should be additional parking facilities for cyclists

There is no space to provide additional cycle parking facilities in Conway Street. The amount of space between the buildings is extremely limited and the space available is being used to provide pavements of a minimum adequate width for pedestrians, whilst maintaining a carriageway of minimum width. The existing level of cycle parking is being maintained in the area but displaced to an adjacent street.

Proposed feature lightstacks are out of character with the town and the Island

The purpose of this feature lighting is to highlight Conway Street’s function as a ‘gateway’ and an important linkage between the town and the waterfront. It is relevant to note that the design of this lighting is consistent with that employed elsewhere in the St Helier Street Life Programme i.e. it is of a simple discrete design of robust materials that is capable of introduction in settings where there is a mixture of architectural building styles and ages and thus requires little/low maintenance.

The inclusion of this particular feature has, however, enjoyed little support and, on this basis, it will be excluded from the scheme. The potential for an alternative ‘gateway feature’ to be privately sponsored, perhaps as a form of public art, will be explored.

Street furniture should be consistent with that used elsewhere

The proposed street furniture is consistent with that elsewhere. It is from the same range of furniture (Woodhouse ‘Geo’) used in Wests’ Centre, Bath Street, Charing Cross and York Street.

There is no explicit consideration for movement of cyclists through the area

None is required. Traffic speed will be calmed and low and the limited carriageway width will ensure that cyclists are able to enjoy appropriate priority within traffic.

Carraigeway width should be reduced to minimum to calm traffic

A minimum carriageway width is being maintained that is sufficient to enable emergency and delivery access

There is a lack of an overall plan for St Helier

The Island Plan and, derived from this, the St Helier Street Life Programme, provides the current overall plan for St Helier. This will be supplemented by the St Helier Regeneration Strategy which is in progress.

Adverse effects of air pollution if traffic speed is reduced

Congestion is the greatest contributor to adverse air quality and as there is no change to traffic management in the area, it is not envisaged that existing levels of congestion will be exacerbated. If vehicle speeds are reduced in Conway Street as a result of the introduction of this scheme there may be some local decrease in air quality as a result of the less efficient burning of fuels, however, the public health impacts of this need to be considered against the potential reduction in pedestrian injury accidents as a result of reduced vehicle speeds and the provision of safer pedestrian routes and crossings. Reducing pedestrian injury accidents also has an economic value to the taxpayer and the Island's economy generally

Any new disabled spaces should allow for people with disabilities to get out of their cars on the pavement side

In locating parking for people with disabilities consideration is given to the flexibility of any particular location in terms of being able to park a vehicle in either direction and also the speed and volume of traffic using a particular street to ensure that the person with disabilities can get in and out of the car as safely as possible. In marking out disabled bays, they are also made bigger than ‘regular’ bays to provide space to the rear for rear access vehicles. Meeting all of these requirements in town is not, however, always possible. The existing disabled provision in Conway Street being evidence of this.

Displaced cycle parking in Wharf Street is vulnerable because of lack of street lighting

This matter remains the subject of consideration and review

Displaced cycle parking in Wharf Street will prejudice deliveries

This matter remains the subject of consideration and review

Reverse traffic flow in Commercial Street to reduce volume of traffic in Conway Street

This matter remains the subject of consideration and review

Junction at Esplanade/ Conway St junction should be filter-in-turn

Filter-in-turn works best where the flows of traffic on each side of the junction are balanced. Consideration also has to be given to the relationship with pedestrian crossings at the junction. This matter remains the subject of consideration and review