Portswood Bus Gate & Brookvale Road ATZ

[OTRA]

Contact details for making your opinions known about the busgate trial​

All of the ways to make your comments (for or against) are listed below. We advise that the first steps should be to :

1. Comment on the Traffic Regulation Orders (ETROs)
2. Email the transport team and your ward councillors.

To log your comments on the ETROs​

Comments on Traffic Regulation Orders are very important and you can make more than one comment, especially as changes take place.

Note that as the Council have suggested further ATZ measures are possible, this is where you can register any opposition (e.g. to modal filter road blocks)

Use the following link and then click on the big button at the top to get to the form Portswood Busgate TRO form

Email the Transport team with immediate queries and comments​

These should be considered and (hopefully) replied to soon after receiving.
Use this email address: portswoodcorridor@southampton.gov.uk

Again, as the Council have suggested further ATZ measures are possible, this is where you can register any opposition (e.g. to modal filter road blocks)

Email your ward councillors​

You may want to copy to, or discuss with, our ward councillors (these are the ones you can vote for and should be representing you as constituents:

Our local ward Councillors​

Councillor.K.Barbour@southampton.gov.uk (against the bus gate)
Councillor.A.Finn@southampton.gov.uk (for the bus gate)
Councillor.j.savage@southampton.gov.uk * (for the bus gate)

Other relevant councillors:​

Councillor.E.Keogh@southampton.gov.uk

Cllr Keogh is possibly the most important councillor in regard to this as Cabinet Member for Transport.

Petitions​

There were two petitions in 2022 (for and against) which, although hosted on the SCC website, were not set up by SCC. Any resident can run a petition via the council website. The results of the petitions were 2868 against and 279 for.

There are three petitions re: the current trial:

https://www.southampton-libdems.org.uk/busgate - (started by Liberal Democrats)

.ePetition - Stop Portswood Bus Gate Trial | Southampton City Council - independent resident petition. Now finished at 5400+ signatures

https://www.southampton.gov.uk/mode...px?ID=500000177&RPID=697373396&HPID=697373396 For the bus gate

Will we will continue to update this page with any further news of surveys, petitions or contact info.

Council Debate video​

Resident deputation to Council meeting and bus gate debate at Council Chamber. This was on March 26 but is available on video here

(discussion starts around 0:22:30 minutes in)

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If you are a resident please do join in all the bus gate discussion here
(you will need to login to view and discuss)
Not yet a member? Join OTRA here

Links:
SCC Portswood info page

Steering Group terms of reference & minutes

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WSP baseline data report

This is the initial data monitoring which the data at the end of the trial will be compared with, and inform SCC on the success of the trial. Or not.

 

[Pete Thomas]

OTRA position and Statement re: Portswood Bus Gate​

Summary:​

OTRA believes there must be better alternatives to a bus gate on Portswood Broadway, that could not only achieve the aims of sustainable and active travel, but do so without disruption to businesses, residents and the creation of even more pollution. For this reason OTRA Committee opposes the bus gate itself, while offering positive alternatives that could possibly be funded by the existing grant money (which is to improve our public transport service, walking and cycling areas around Portswood).

OTRA Committee Position Statement​

OTRA understands and supports the overall vision of improving public transport as a means to create a more sustainable infrastructure in the city, along with cleaner air and a healthier environment in which both residents and businesses can thrive.

However, residents have reported that the way the scheme has been implemented has been severely compromised by poor design and implementation, along with significant bad faith in terms of the way it has sidelined community co-design input and engagement. One of its main aims to divert traffic from the Broadway to the bypass at Thomas Lewis Way is clearly failing, as much of that traffic is instead using local residential areas, creating hazards, congestion, and bringing more pollution due to the extra vehicle miles travelled and constant stopping and starting.

We believe there must be better alternatives to a bus gate that could not only achieve similar aims, but also bring about extended improvements along the entire Corridor, as opposed to just a few hundred metres of Portswood Road and the Broadway. For this reason OTRA Committee opposes the bus gate (but not sustainable travel).

A Greener Way Forward Without a Bus Gate?​

We favour economical, sustainable connectivity that can easily be aligned with encouraging active travel and safety for pedestrians, cyclists and wheelers. Instead of the bus gate, there are alternative solutions that may achieve the same outcome but with fewer direct disadvantages for all those who work, live, study, or shop in the Portswood area. These ideas do not preclude other parts of the existing proposal such as a Portswood travel hub and areas of greening in the High Street. These might include (but are not limited to):

1. SVD/iBus technology that would give buses priority at traffic lights¹, not only in Portswood itself, but at any traffic light, e.g. the approaches to the Broadway from Bevois Valley to Swaythling.
2. Investment in technology to enforce parking regulations not only at and close to bus stops, but also along the entire length of local bus routes.
3. Safe crossings that prioritise not only pedestrians but also buses.
4. Local Hopper buses

The above would serve the aims of the scheme without:

• dividing the community and causing inconvenience or distress to residents and carers.
• creating extra pollution.
• threatening local businesses and the survival of our High Street as a viable vibrant, diverse and integrated centre of local activity.

1. SVD/iBus...the transceiver installed on the bus sends a signal to the beacon which then transmits a signal to the traffic signal controller. The traffic signal controller then manages the sequence of the lights to assist the transit of the bus through the junction. This can be by extending a green phase, skipping a stage or shortening the green phase for other traffic in order to give the bus a green signal earlier than would otherwise have been the case.​

More information here