Post on 05-Aug-2018
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone i
DOCUMENT CONTROL
Report
Reference Issue Description Originator Authorised
Lea Bridge Road
Engagement Strategy
01 Draft version of
strategy for
presentation to
Project Board
Jon Little
08.12.14
Vala Valavan
08.12.14
Lea Bridge Road
Engagement Strategy
02 Final draft following
presentation to
project board
Jon Little
15.12.14
Vala Valavan
15.12.14
CONTACT
Jon Little
Complementary Measures Manager
jon.little@walthamforest.gov.uk
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone i
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This document has been produced to provide guidance to the engagement and consultation of
residents, businesses and road users during the design development for the Lea Bridge Road- A
Street for Everyone project.
It provides details on the project stages, their sub-tasks and roles and responsibilities from inception,
through data collection to engagement, consultation and how to work with the community during
implementation.
It should be noted that this is a live document which will be updated as the project progresses using
continuous improvement to refine and improve approaches to engagement and consultation.
Additional content relevant to later stages will be added once the approach to project delivery is
refined and adjusted. Key dates included are based upon the current project programme and the best
available knowledge at time of writing. It should be noted that these dates are subject to change from
a range of variables some of which are externally managed and therefore subject to change.
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone ii
CONTENTS PAGE PAGE NO.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY I
1. INTRODUCTION 3
2. ENGAGEMENT PRINCIPLES 5
3. DESIGN STATEMENT 10
4. BASELINE INFORMATION GATHERING 12
5. STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT 14
6. PRE CONSULTATION ENGAGEMENT 16
7. CONSULTATION 24
8. STATUTORY CONSULTATION 26
9. IMPLEMENTATION 27
10. REVIEW 28
APPENDIX A – A
APPENDIX B – B
APPENDIX C – C
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 3
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Lea Bridge Road is the Waltham Forest Mini Holland flagship scheme. The
scope of the scheme, the length of the road and the changing nature of land use
means that the engagement and consultation of the affected residents and
businesses and road users will be complex.
1.2 It will be of benefit to manage the consultation in a similar fashion to the
development of the design meaning that it is broken down into more manageable
sections. For the purpose of the design the scheme has been broken into the
following sections:
Borough boundary to junction with Orient Way/Argall Ave
Junction with Orient Way/Argall Ave to Markhouse Road/Church Road
junction
Markhouse Road/Church Road junction to Bakers Arms
Bakers Arms to Leyton Green Road
Leyton Green Road to Whipps Cross Roundabout
1.3 It is recommended that the same sections are applied to the engagement and
consultation and that specific officers are given responsibility for the engagement
of each section. This will ensure that officers involved can develop a greater
understanding of local issues and will be more able to manage the responses,
enquiries and face to face engagement required.
1.4 There is little doubt that the engagement involved in such a project will be
resource intensive and in order to ensure a successful engagement officers
involved will have to have a reasonable knowledge of both the scheme and the
reasoning behind the proposals.
1.5 It may also be worthwhile considering the use of external resources to support
the engagement team during periods of the process such as going door to door
to meet businesses. However these external resources would also have to have
a good knowledge of the scheme and the reasoning behind the proposals.
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 4
Key Dates
1.7 The table below sets out the proposed timescales associated with project
delivery and engagement. It should be noted that these dates are approximate
and based upon the project delivery programme as of the end of November
2014. These are subject to change due to a wide range of project variables and
external influences such as the buildability of bridges included in proposals or
traffic modelling approval form Transport for London.
Project stage Programme dates
Stage 1- Background information gathering June 2014 to February 2015
Stage 2- Stakeholder engagement December 14- Ongoing
Stage 3- Pre consultation engagement January 2015 to June 2015
Stage 4- Consultation April 2015 to September 2015
Stage 5- Statutory consultation June 2015 to December 2015
Stage 6-Implementation July 2015 to March 2017
Stage 7- Review March 2016 to November 2018
Key points
Corridor should be broken up into manageable sections for engagement
and consultation
A lead officer should be appointed to be responsible for the engagement of
each section
The engagement will be resource intensive
Key dates may be subject to change
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 5
2. ENGAGEMENT PRINCIPLES
The overall project process
2.1 Residents and businesses want to know and understand the entire project
process. If someone's interest has been sparked by an element of the scheme
they are likely to want to know what will happen next and more importantly when
something may be introduced or built.
2.2 Not advising people of these vital pieces of information will be detrimental to the
project and often reflect badly on the Council. It provides ammunition to anyone
who thinks the consultation is not inclusive or the decision is a foregone
conclusion. Both these instances only damage the final outcome and reputations
of officers and the Council. This should be avoided at all cost by giving
information on project stages and the likely completion dates as soon as they are
known. If they change then affected residents and businesses should be advised
as soon as possible of the change and any impact.
Branding
2.3 The brand for the Waltham Forest Mini Holland programme will be available for
use in the engagement and consultation of residents, businesses and road
users. The brand will therefore be used for all engagement and consultation for
Lea Bridge Road documentation where relevant. Use of the brand will be
governed by the project wide branding guidelines.
Engagement area
2.4 The proposed engagement area for the Lea Bridge Road project will include:
Lea Bridge Road and immediate frontages
Community groups
Shoppers and road users
Any adjoining side road
Users of Lea Valley Park
Visitors to Epping Forest
Attendees at places of worship
Pupils at local schools and colleges
Whipps Cross Hospital
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 6
Raising awareness
2.5 Awareness of the consultation is obviously a very important part of the project
stage. Despite consultation packs being clearly labeled and delivered to every
household some will remain unaware of the proposal due to discarding the pack
or someone else in the household receiving it. This can be damaging to public
consultations with accusations often made that the engagement has not been
inclusive or that the council is trying to ‘sneak’ a scheme in.
2.6 This should not be the case with Mini Holland and all should be done to ensure
this is not the case. Whilst it is true that some elements of the individual
schemes must be implemented in order to address certain issues or provide
facilities that do not currently exist, the final design for many other elements can
and should be worked up in partnership with the local community. This relies on
people being aware of the differing stages and events organised as part of the
project.
2.7 Resources (both internal and community) that could be utilised to raise
awareness of the Lea Bridge Road proposals include:
Councillors
Resident and community groups
Community Ward Forums
Major retailers and employers
Council and community buildings
Social media
Street notices
A pop up engagement shop
Well known shops
Schools
Places of worship
Frontline staff
WFN
Council website
Stakeholders and their media streams
Outdoor advertising
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 7
Bigger picture
2.8 It is absolutely vital that residents and businesses in the borough understand that
the Lea Bridge Road proposal is part of a much wider programme of proposals
that will benefit the whole of the borough.
2.9 The content on the council website has improved dramatically since the
appointment of the dedicated communications officer but will need to improve
further. The limited functionality of the council website means it is not possible to
provide information in a range of formats required. A Mini Holland Microsite is in
the process of being developed and will be available for use during the
engagement and consultation for Lea Bridge Road.
Development and regeneration
2.10 There is a high level of development and regeneration either underway or
proposed on Lea Bridge Road and in the surrounding area, specifically the area
known as the Northern Olympic Fringe. In December 2015 Lea Bridge Station
will be reopening as part of a new London Overground service from Stratford to
Tottenham Hale.
Open data policy
2.11 An open data policy should be adopted for the entire Mini Holland programme.
This will help people buy into the design and consultation process as they will
see the issues for themselves.
2.12 Data used to develop proposals including traffic speed and volume surveys
should be readily available during the consultation stage and developed into
maps and images that convey messages in a simple way.
Key facts and figures
2.13 Facts and figures that are crucial to decision making by residents and
businesses should be explained in easy to understand ways so informed
decisions can be made. For example areas of new greenspace should be
explained in known areas such as football pitches. Statistics should be explained
in the simplest ways. If it makes more sense to say seven out of ten than 70 per
cent then this should be adopted.
2.14 If statistics can be converted into visual representations these should also be
used instead of written statements as again these aid those responding to the
consultation understand what is proposed.
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 8
Social media
2.15 Widely used social media forums in the borough such as Twitter, Facebook, and
Instagram are great ways to engage with the community. They are quick, cost
effective and enable messages to be varied or modified due to the immediate
nature of communication through these media. The project team cannot currently
use any of these forums due to internal restrictions. This is having a detrimental
impact on overall communications and engagement.
2.16 It is proposed that the Council will have a social media feed in place for the Lea
Bridge Road engagement. This should mean that the team can engage with the
public with more flexibility and enable an awareness campaign of the proposals,
the benefits of cycling and issues around road user behavior.
2.17 Regardless of the Council social media capability it is however possible to
‘piggyback’ other social media feeds that are well used in the Walthamstow and
Leyton areas. These include:
Waltham Forest Cycling
Walthamstow Parents
Leyton Village
Leyton E10
2.18 These feeds/websites are popular with people who live and work in the area and
working with the moderators/owners of these feeds to raise awareness of the
consultation is recommended. Hash tags that are also commonly used include
#wfminiholland #awesomestow #e17, #e10, #e11.
2.19 There are a number of Facebook pages which are used by the community to
discuss local issues including a Mini Holland sub-page on Walthamstow Parents.
Similarly to the local Twitter feeds it would be beneficial to the engagement of
the local community if the project team could use these forums.
2.20 There is regular discussion on these forums and currently this is without any
council input. Despite informed residents such as representatives of the local
cycling campaign taking part these discussions are often ill informed and
inaccurate which only damages the overall project reputation.
2.21 One approach to address this (with limited risk) would be to only respond to
people who post on these pages with an invitation to engage with the Council via
one of the official engagement channels.
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 9
Street notices
2.22 Street notices are good ways in which to raise local awareness of proposals,
events or consultations. For the Lea Bridge Road consultation street notices will
be placed on lamp columns during the consultation period. They will advise road
users of the on-going consultation and include QR codes to link to the on-line
version of the survey.
2.23 They should be bright, well designed, concise, convey the right information and
use maps and graphics to support any text. Once the event or consultation
period is past they should be removed to ensure they do not become an
eyesore.
2.24 We will also have outdoor advertising to make people aware that Mini Holland is
coming. The messages should be a combination of awareness of the scheme,
how to behave at new junctions and also include positive messages about
walking and cycling. It is likely that TfL will be running campaigns of their own
and a discussion about ensuring messages are not mixed has been
programmed for December 2014.
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 10
3. DESIGN STATEMENT
3.1 The proposed improvements to the Lea Bridge Road corridor have been
designed to build upon the successful improvements made as part of the Bakers
Arms Regeneration Scheme. They are however landscape changing and will
make significant improvements to the public realm including the redesign of the
main junctions, new bridges, improved footways, carriageways and of course the
introduction of world class cycling facilities.
3.2 The main components of the scheme are:
Fully segregated cycle tracks (2.0m default) in both directions from the
borough boundary with Hackney to Whipps Cross Roundabout.
The conversion of Whipps Cross roundabout to a signalised junction with
separate crossing facilities for pedestrians and cyclists, a new public space,
improved bus facilities and better connectivity into Epping Forest.
The redesign of the junction with Wood Street (linked to improvements to
Whipps Cross)
The introduction of blended crossings (paved road surface) at side roads
that slow drivers and give greater priority for pedestrians and cyclists using
the segregated cycle tracks.
The removal of some sections of ineffective bus lane
The adjustment of operational hours on limited sections of bus lanes to
balance modal use
Improved bus stop facilities
Floating bus stops which allow cyclists to bypass them without re-entering
general traffic lanes
New public spaces at Whipps Cross, Shrenall Street/Grove Road,
Markhouse Corner and small pocket parks throughout
New parking bays arrangements for short term customer parking and
residents
Locations for loading and unloading that are safe and do not impact traffic
flow
A redesign of the junctions with Markhouse Road/Church Road and Orient
Way/Argyll Avenue to improve conditions for pedestrians, cyclists and all
other road users
An upgrade of the junction at Bakers Arms to give dedicated space for
cycling
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 11
An additional bridge at Lea Bridge to provide a segregated crossing for
cyclists and the junction with Orient Way/Argyll Avenue
Additional greening, planting and street trees introduced throughout the
route
Street lighting improvements
Improved signage and wayfinding
Integration with Lea Bridge Road Station and other departments on corridor
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 12
Scope
•Review exisitng data
•Define additional data required
Traffic data
•Accident and collisions
•Traffic speed and volume
Landuse
•Business survey (types)
•Identification of spaces of opportunity
Raising awareness
•Produce graphics and plans on data
•Use to promote key messages
Key stage review
•Review data collectiony
•Ensure data collection supports monitoring
4. BASELINE INFORMATION GATHERING
4.1 Prior to the commencement of design development,
traffic surveys including traffic speed and volume and a
review of existing bus journey times and service specific
issues. This includes a review of parking demand on Lea
Bridge Road.
4.2 A review of collisions and pedestrian/cycle personal
injury accidents has also been conducted. Previous
public realm schemes such as the Bakers Arms
Improvement scheme were also used as reference points
for design development. Background data on public
perception has also been gained from responses to the
public engagement for the Bakers Arms scheme.
4.3 Much of this background data will be of interest to
participants in the engagement and consultation process.
It will help people understand the potential impact of
proposals (both positive and negative) and for that
reason should be readily available for people to review in
presentable formats. Design proposals that are ultimately
driven by road safety concerns (not just for cyclists) need
to be presented in that way so residents and businesses
understand the proposals are for the good of all.
4.4 There is still additional background data to gather
including information from businesses about their
servicing and loading requirements. This needs to be
completed prior to public consultation to ensure
consideration has been given to these requirements.
4.5 If this is not completed to the level of detail required there
are major risks that objections will be received during the
consultation and that the cycle tracks will be blocked by
loading vehicles once introduced which would be a major
issue.
4.6 Understanding levels of parking required will also be a
key success factor. It should however be noted that
businesses massively over-estimate the volume of
custom that travels to their business by car. Parking beat surveys should instead
be used to determine required parking levels in consultation with the parking
design team.
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 13
Monitoring
4.7 Monitoring of the success of the introduction of the Mini Holland measures is an
important part of the overall project. A monitoring framework has been
developed which will be used to gauge the success of the implementation of the
individual schemes. In order to effectively monitor the success of scheme a
sound data set related to conditions and trends prior to implementation will need
to be acquired.
4.8 This data should be collated as part of the background data collection but the
scope of data collated should be measured against the monitoring framework.
This can be conducted as part of the Key Stage Review.
Key stage review
4.9 Prior to moving into the engagement stage a Key Stage Review should be
undertaken to ensure all information required in order to have a constructive
conversation with the community during the engagement and consultation has
been collated. It should also be in a presentable form that is understandable by
people of all ages and backgrounds.
Key points
Background data should be made available for interested parties
It is vital that servicing and loading requirements for businesses are
understood prior to consultation
A Key Stage Review of data should be undertaken to ensure records are
complete
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 14
Agree Stakeholder
list
•Agree draft stakeholder list who are considered key external stakeholders
Councillor engagement
•Identify existing key issues
•Identify key local stakeholders
Raise awareness
•Raise awareness of upcoming engagement with stakeholders and frontline staff
5. STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
5.1 Early engagement with key stakeholders will
be a vital part of raising awareness of the
scheme and spreading word of the upcoming
consultation on proposals. Key stakeholders
identified for this project are:
Ward Councilors
Waltham Forest Cycling Campaign
Mini Holland stakeholders group
The London Borough of Hackney
The London Borough of Redbridge
Other Council departments
Transport for London
Local Schools
Lea Valley Park
City of London Corporation
Argyll Business Improvement District
Places of worship
New Spitalfields Market
Eurostar
Wanis
Leyton Orient Football Club
The Olympic Velodrome
Other key businesses/stakeholders
Whipps Cross Hospital
5.2 It is recommended that early engagement with these organisations consists of a
face to face visit from staff fully informed on proposals so they can explain the
proposals and field any enquiries. Staff who are not informed may damage the
engagement stage by creating uncertainty which can quickly turn into rumours
circulated in the public domain.
5.3 It will also be an opportunity to engage stakeholders into the engagement
process and hopefully mean that when they communicate with others
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 15
(customers, staff, congregation etc.) they are well informed and understand the
principles in addition to the proposals.
5.4 Engaging in this way will also provide an opportunity to provide information about
other Mini Holland projects and initiatives such as cycle training or driver
awareness training.
Engagement of frontline staff
5.5 Frontline staff, particularly those who work in the public realm, transport and
highways fields and deal with members of the public should be made aware of
the proposals and their implications. It is vital that those who come into contact
with members of the public understand not only the scope of proposals but in
addition the range of benefits. This could be through a series of briefings/drop in
sessions or information via email.
Key points
Stakeholders should be engaged as soon as possible
Frontline staff should be briefed so they are fully informed of proposals
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 16
Key messages
•Agree key messages to be used during engagement
Engagement with
politicians and media
•Identify existing key issues
•Identify key local stakeholders
Resident Engagenment
•Engagement on perception
•Introduce comp measures
•introduce opportunities to get involed in co-design
Business Engagement
•Engagement to understand servicing and loading
•Introduce comp measures for business
•Introduce opportunities for co-design and ownership
Road users
•Engage with road users to understand journeys and existing perception
•Engage with shoppers and visitors to understadn public perception
6. PRE CONSULTATION ENGAGEMENT
6.1 The engagement of the community prior to any
public consultation will be a key step towards
successful scheme delivery. There is little doubt
that if this is not carried out well the change that
the Lea Bridge Road proposals will be met with
a very mixed response.
6.2 Prior to the engagement, key messages should
be conveyed through available council media to
introduce the Council vision for the road.
Careful consideration should be given to the
use of the latest technology such as
visualisations, ‘fly through’ models and internet
based consultation tools.
6.3 The scheme will mean wholesale improvements
to one of the boroughs main transport corridors
and locally known places. Most people will have
a view on the proposal and will want to provide
their comments.
6.4 If the proposals are shown to people in visual
form, that are easy to appreciate, it is much
more likely that we will have a successful
consultation that engages as many people as
possible. It will also be critical to project
progression that the range of benefits to all
users and not just the benefits to cyclists are
conveyed in a clear concise manner.
Engaging politicians and the media
6.5 A cycle ride down Lea Bridge Road for key
stakeholders including local politicians
(including MPs), senior Council staff, media
(national, local and industry) and community
leaders should be arranged during community
engagement. This could be used as an
opportunity to raise awareness of the scheme,
highlight the existing issues and the
transformational proposals. Including all these
key influencers will mean they have a more informed view of the existing
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 17
situation and the positive nature of the proposals and the reasoning behind
them.
Engaging with local residents
6.6 The scale of the proposals mean that engaging with local residents both of Lea
Bridge Road and adjoining roads will be one of the most important project stages
and the success of the overall consultation will depend heavily on this.
6.7 Local residents should be able to:
Understand the reasons for proposals
Be informed of the overall proposals
Be informed of the local proposals that will impact where they live
Be aware of the benefits and any disbenefits (if relevant) of the proposals
Be encouraged to take up cycling through a targeted awareness campaign
Be able to feed into the design development, particularly on public realm
elements such as greening and new public spaces
Opportunities for residents
6.8 There are a broad range of opportunities for residents as part of the roll-out of
Mini Holland and the Borough Cycling Programme (BCP). In addition to the
proposals for Lea Bridge Road there are wider range of initiatives and measures
that residents can take advantage of. These need to be promoted and as part of
the Lea Bridge Road this should be done to ensure the discussion with residents
is broad and introduces as many positives from the Mini Holland programme and
BCP.
6.9 There will also be opportunities for resident feedback on elements of the design
(new public spaces, road closures and the transition between the scheme
extents and adjoining side roads) to be incorporated into the final design. To
enable this residents will need to be engaged prior to the public consultation
stage.
Complementary Measures for residents
6.10 These should be promoted to all residents on the corridor. This should be in the
form of a specifically designed leaflet and internet content.
Cycle parking (on-street cycle stands and secure lockers)
Cycle training is available for anyone who lives, works or studies in the
borough
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 18
Opportunities to help design and maintain new areas of planting and
greening
Engaging with local businesses
6.11 Early engagement with businesses will be one of the core engagement activities
of the Lea Bridge Road project. Businesses should have an opportunity to:
Understand the reasons for proposals
Be informed of the overall proposals and those that may benefit/impact their
business operations
Be advised of any opportunities for their specific business
Be informed of cycling opportunities for businesses
Be able to provide initial comments on the outline proposals
Be able to contact the design team to discuss throughout the duration of the
project delivery
Opportunities for businesses
6.12 There are a broad range of opportunities for businesses as part of the roll-out of
Mini Holland and the Borough Cycling Programme (BCP). These can be put into
two main categories: those that are scheme related opportunities and wider
opportunities brought about through the complementary measures programme.
Scheme related opportunities for businesses
6.13 Scheme related opportunities for businesses are associated with the proposed
public realm elements including the function of spaces, street furniture and
greening. Engaging businesses at an early stage in the design process will likely
mean they are more receptive to final outcomes.
Complementary Measures for businesses
6.14 The range of complementary measures available to businesses through both the
Mini Holland and BCP should be promoted to all businesses on the corridor. This
should be in the form of a specifically designed material including:
A covering letter for businesses
A MH for businesses information booklet
Supporting leaflet and internet content detailing cycle to work, cycle
parking, cycle training etc.
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 19
6.15 Initiatives available include:
Cycle training is available for anyone who lives, works or studies in the
borough
Driver Awareness training
FORS
Sustainable travel advice
Helping businesses to adapt to cycling
6.16 There are numerous businesses that could use cycling as part of their daily
business operations and lots of businesses who could also benefit from cycling
in the borough.
6.17 Businesses that could directly benefit from a cycling culture include:
Newsagents
Cafes, pubs and restaurants
Takeaway food outlets
Sports and clothing retailers
Cycle shops
Taxi companies
Helping businesses to adopt cycling
6.18 Businesses that could adopt cycling as part of their business practice include:
The Council
Any business where staff move location as part of their day to day business
(e.g. Estate Agents)
Any business who delivers but specifically:
o Food outlets (takeaway, sandwich shops, delicatessens)
o Couriers/Mail companies
6.19 There are many examples of these types of businesses adopting cycling not just
in Denmark and the Netherlands but in the UK and London.
6.20 There are a range of incentives and initiatives that are external to the mini
Holland project but would support the businesses in the adoption of cycling.
These include the cycle to work scheme and travel planning for businesses
delivered by Transport for London. TfL have recently contacted the council to
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 20
help deliver this is Waltham Forest. A simple referral scheme following face to
face businesses should be developed to facilitate this.
Employees of local businesses
6.21 In addition to the incentives to businesses the range of opportunities available to
staff of businesses through both the Mini Holland programme/the BCP and other
externally run schemes such as the cycle to work scheme. An increase in take-
up of such schemes will make cycling more of a mainstream activity, encourage
new cyclists and help reduce demand for business parking spaces. These
initiatives should therefore be promoted as part of the offer to businesses during
the Lea Bridge Road engagement and consultation.
Engaging with road users and shoppers
6.22 Whilst Lea Bridge Road is a shopping area and also a residential street its
function is primarily a link meaning it is a transport corridor. It is a well-used route
from the borough and the surrounding north-east London area into central
London. In terms of cycling it is the boroughs most popular cycle route with in the
region of 1200 cyclists using the road every day.
6.23 It is also a busy bus route with 8 services using the road linking Walthamstow,
Bakers Arms and Leyton area with Central London and centres in north-east
London.
6.24 In order to understand the aspirations of both road users and shoppers a range
of engagement activities will be held.
6.25 With regard shopping the Bakers Arms is a busy local centre serving the south
Walthamstow and north Leyton areas. Understanding the views of shoppers will
be an important part of ensuring the final design proposals are inclusive and
meet the needs of all. It is recommended that public perception surveys are
undertaken as part of the engagement process to understand how people feel
about the road, their experience of the public realm and views on road safety.
6.26 The results of previous engagements such as public perception surveys carried
out prior to the London 2012 Olympic Games will also be used as references to
help understand the views of road users and shoppers.
6.27 Roadside surveys of cyclists will be undertaken in the am peak at various
locations on the road. The surveys will focus on understanding where cyclists
join and leave Lea Bridge Road, their final destination/employer with the aim of
receiving an endorsement for the scheme.
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 21
Engaging with other stakeholders
6.28 Given the scale and nature of the proposals it is likely that stakeholders both
from other parts of the borough and further afield will want to provide comments
on the proposals. It would be damaging, both to scheme development and the
reputation of the Council if these views were not considered.
6.29 It should however be considered as to what value to apply to these comments
versus those of residents of the road and the surrounding area. It will however
be of value to understand peoples’ views on the early proposals to incorporate
into the design process.
Engaging with public transport operators
6.30 The Council has already been in contact with TfL Buses in relation to proposals
included within the overall scheme that may have an impact on their operations.
These include the redesign of bus lanes, bus stops and in the case of Whipps
Cross a complete overhaul of bus facilities.
6.31 A positive response has been received on this proposal to date and staff are now
attending a regular meeting with TfL and bus operators to discuss the
implications of specifically Lea Bridge Road but also the wider Mini Holland
programme. It is hoped that this close working relationship will ensure a
successful delivery of much improved facilities for bus services, drivers and
passengers.
Engaging with other council departments
6.32 There are numerous council departments that deal with the residents and
businesses on a daily basis and often receive requests for changes that are wide
ranging from requests for more trees, to bins to anti-social behaviour.
6.33 Reacting to issues/requests such as these as part of the Mini Holland process
will show a joined up approach, allow the focus of the project to widen to the
entire public realm and provide costs savings during implementation. Prior to the
public consultation an engagement of relevant council departments should be
undertaken so current issues can be understood and presented to consulted
parties as part of the background information.
6.34 In addition council functions such as street cleansing or parking enforcement
could easily be carried out by cycle. For example parking enforcement in
Lambeth operated by the Councils enforcement partner NSL is conducted
almost entirely by bike. The Council should speak to partners and service
providers to encourage them to adopt cycling.
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 22
6.35 Cost savings can be achieved both in time and money can be made from the
adoption of cycling as part of day to day operations. The redesign of Lea Bridge
Road will to a certain extent make this a necessity rather than a nice to have.
The Council should engage with providers to develop how this could be
progressed and ensure that delivery partners are ready and able to adapt to the
new road layout once implemented.
Engaging with schools
6.36 Schools should be included in the engagement process on the proposals. An
increase in the numbers of children walking and cycling to school in the area
would greatly reduce congestion during peak hours and would also help the
council address a number of other key issues, not least childhood obesity.
6.37 Children are often engineered out of public engagements on transport or public
realm projects as only one response is accepted per household or the response
mechanism is developed to not accept responses from those under 17. This is
not the right way to engage the community and effectively damages the end
result as the views of a major segment of the community is missing.
6.38 We should aim to engage all schools within the area surrounding Lea Bridge
Road. This could involve a visit to the schools in the immediate area to present
the proposals to school governers and the school council. School councils
(pupils elected to represent all pupils in decision making) are great ways to
engage the school. Additionally the Waltham Forest Young Advisors could be
engaged to support the council with this task.
Engaging with places of worship
6.39 Places of worship are good places to engage with the local community
particularly if the issue that is being discussed is contentious. Religious leaders
can often help engage the local community and explain broad principles or
ideas. This can be particularly useful when there is a potential language barrier
or technical terminology that may be otherwise difficult to communicate and in
situations where cultural barriers such as those associated with cycling exist.
6.40 In addition it would be of major benefit to the overall scheme if the places of
worship located on Lea Bridge Road or in the immediate vicinity could be
encouraged to consider how they could benefit from the proposals from both a
public realm perspective and how attendees could be encouraged to take up
cycling. Places of worship are often generators of traffic and increased levels of
parking and working proactively with them to embrace sustainable modes of
travel will be of benefit to the scheme, the places of worship and their members.
Lea Bridge Road A Street for Everyone 23
6.41 This may include:
Cycle parking near to place of worship
Cycle training
Walks and cycle routes that the places of worship could enjoy
Information on cycling in the borough and the nearby Lea Valley Park
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7. CONSULTATION
7.1 The consultation stage for the Lea Bridge Road scheme will follow a traditional
transportation consultation process but will include a number of innovative
additional elements. These additional elements are aimed at making it easier for
interested parties to engage in the consultation process and to ensure a
representative response of residents, road users and other interested parties is
received.
7.2 The key element of the consultation process will be a consultation pack
consisting of:
A consultation document including background information
A plan of proposals
A questionnaire
Frequently asked questions
Mini Holland Booklets
7.3 A series of booklets for the Mini Holland programme focusing on the benefits and
the available measures will be available for the engagement and consultation
stages of the Lea Bridge Road project. This means documentation about the
proposals for the road can be more specific and reference these supporting
documents where necessary.
Engaging the area in co-design
7.4 The co-design process; that is designing in partnership with the community will
be used as part of the public consultation design development stage. Local
residents, businesses and road users will be given the opportunity to contribute
to the development of proposals through a range of engagement approaches
7.5 This approach would ensure residents and businesses develop their own
schemes for their own areas with preferences for greening or other features
designed by local people for themselves instilling feelings of ownership and
empowerment in the community.
Co-design workshops
7.6 A series of co-design workshops (or drop in sessions) will be held during the
consultation period, with locations yet to be finalised. The workshops should be
developed in line with the proposed break-up of the corridor into engagement
sections as outlined in the introduction to this strategy. This will enable the
events to focus on local issues as well as the overall proposals.
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7.7 By this stage there should be an understanding from initial engagement as to the
key local issues and ideas that could be embedded into project delivery to
address these. This will be a key stage in design development and if conducted
in the right way will enable the scheme to be tailored to local needs and wants.
7.8 Outdoor sessions should be held with the aim of engaging commuters
(pedestrians and cyclists). These sessions will be held during the week and
weekend with the aim of engaging with a range of local people using Lea Bridge
Road.
7.9 The workshops will be an opportunity to engage face to face with interested
parties, understand their views on proposals and discuss any suggestions issues
or concerns.
On-line
7.10 To support the consultation all documentation will be made available on-line and
additionally there will be the opportunity to complete the survey on-line. The
survey will be hosted on the main council website with a link to an additional on-
line tool, the commonplace app which is explained below.
Commonplace app
7.11 The council has appointed architects Whatif to work on public realm elements of
the Lea Bridge Road scheme. As part of the commission there is a specialist
area engagement app (Commonplace) available for use. The app will be used to
support on line engagement with respondees able to provide comments on the
overall proposals, specific items or add suggestions to improve the public realm
such as additional tree planting.
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8. STATUTORY CONSULTATION
8.1 Following the public consultation the final scheme proposal will be subject to
statutory consultation. The statutory consultation process is the legal process
that any physical changes to the public highway have to go through before they
can be implemented. It involves the publishing of notices in the local press
advertising the intentions and giving interested parties the opportunity to
comment during a 21 day period.
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9. IMPLEMENTATION
9.1 Implementation is programmed between July 2015 and March 2017. The
implementation will be complex and due to the significant changes to major
junctions, new bridges and the public highway will involve some disruption to the
road.
9.2 Working with the community to ensure any changes are fully understood and the
extents of the implications of the any physical works (both during construction
and after) are effectively communicated will be key tasks during this stage.
9.3 It is recommended that a dedicated communication and engagement plan is
developed for this stage to ensure that the above is communicated clearly and
concisely. Similar to the engagement and consultation stages specific officers
should be appointed to liaise with the community on specific sections of the
route. For continuity it is recommended that wherever feasible the same officers
who were responsible for engagement and consultation are given the vital role of
liaison with residents and businesses during construction.
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10. REVIEW
10.1 Whilst a review of the scheme involving an area wide consultation is not
proposed as part of the scheme Lea Bridge Road will be monitored post
implementation to understand the impact the proposal has had on a wide variety
of independent variables.
10.2 These include (but are not limited to):
Numbers of pedestrians and cyclists using the corridor
Personal injury accidents/collisions involving cyclists and pedestrians
A post scheme public realm perception survey to ascertain public opinion
on the improvements to public space including a proportion of cyclists
using the improved link