Baffling appeal decision gives Castle Eden Crematorium the green light

In what must surely rank as one of the most bewildering planning decisions of the past few years, the government’s planning inspector has upheld the planning appeal lodged by Dignity plc, meaning that the crematorium at Castle Eden can now go ahead, subject to certain conditions (please see post dated Tuesday 26 July 2016 for background information on the appeal process).

As if to rub salt in the wound, the planning inspector's office saw fit to use the Christmas holiday period as a good time to bury bad news. The outcome of the appeal hearing was published on the inspectorate's online portal yesterday without any formal notification sent to us as local members or to the businesses and residents of Castle Eden who have fought so hard for three years to fend off Dignity's plans to construct an unneeded crematorium in a location that is so clearly unsuited to any development of this nature. We see this discourtesy as an insult and a snub to the people of Castle Eden.

Naturally we are desperately disappointed that the planning inspector chose to disregard just about every argument put forward by objectors at the latest appeal hearing, preferring instead to come down firmly on the side of a company that has no concern at all for the well-being of the businesses or the safety of the residents of Castle Eden. Our true feelings cannot be reflected accurately on a public blog accessible to innocent young eyes so we feel it better to leave our comments at that for the time being.

However we cannot allow this development to go ahead without a fight. We will arrange to meet residents' representatives next week to plan a way forward in the struggle to keep Castle Eden untainted by this unwanted, unneeded and unsafe development.

For full details of the planning inspector's decision go to www.planninginspectorate.gov.uk using the case reference number 3146228 in the search bar.

Full details of our involvement to date in the campaign against Dignity's crematorium proposals can be tracked by typing Castle Eden Crematorium in the search bar on this blog site.

Council Services during the Festive Season

We have received information about council services over the Christmas and New Year period.

Please see below for details:

Bin collections will stay the same so people are asked to put their bins out on their usual collection day.

Real Christmas tree collections can be booked online free of charge between 19 December 2016 and 8 January 2017 at www.durham.gov.uk. Alternatively call 03000 261 000 during normal office hours.

Most of our public-facing council buildings and contact centres will be closed over the Christmas and New Year holidays but service information and online services will still be available via www.durham.gov.uk.

Council buildings will be open as normal on Friday 23 December 2016 (normal opening hours) and will re-open on Tuesday 3 January 2017 following the festive closure.  

Customer Access Points will close at 4.30pm on Friday 23 December and will reopen at 8.30am on Tuesday 3 January.

Library opening times may vary, so it’s best to call into your local library (or look on the website) before Christmas to check opening times.

Leisure centres will be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day, Bank Holiday Tuesday 27 December, New Year’s Day and Bank Holiday Monday 2 January and will close early at 4pm on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.

One Point Hubs/Children’s Centres will close or have restricted opening times over the Christmas period.  It’s best to call into your local hub/centre before Christmas to see whether or not they’ll be open.

Day centres for adults will remain open, except for Christmas Day and New Year’s Day and the bank holidays.

Register offices will be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and the bank holidays and will close at 12.45pm on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. Please note, the following offices will be open between Christmas and New Year but will operate on an appointments basis only – phone 03000 266 000:

Bishop Auckland

Aykley Heads, Durham

Barnard Castle

Chester-le-Street

Do it online services via the www.durham.gov.uk website will be available over the festive period, but request forms will not be processed until council offices re-open on 3 January.  Any emergencies should be reported using the emergency out of hours number 03000 260 000 and not via the do it online request forms.

Visit www.durham.gov.uk/festive for more information and updates on our services.

Useful numbers:

Emergency Out of Hours number 03000 260 000

24/7 automated payments line 0300 456 2771 (debit/credit card)

You can keep up-to-date with winter service information on the council’s twitter and Facebook sites.

Hesleden Christmas Tree lighting ceremony

After the Christmas tree lights were switched on at Blackhall Colliery on Monday evening it was Hesleden's turn last night to light up their tree, and once more the people of Hesleden did the village proud with a magnificent turnout.

The chairman of the parish council, Cllr Gaynor Crute, welcomed everyone to the event by introducing the staff and pupils from Hesleden Primary School who, despite the bitter cold, came along once again in their numbers to entertain residents gathered around the tree.

Following a selection of seasonal favourites, performed with their usual enthusiasm by the pupils of Hesleden Primary School, the Rev Susan Richardson led the countdown to the switching on of the tree lights.

As ever, thanks go to the clerk, staff and members of Monk Hesleden Parish Council for organising the Christmas tree lighting ceremony, and also to the Rev Susan Richardson who can be guaranteed to bring along plenty of enthusiasm and cheer to any community event.

However a very special thank you goes to the staff and pupils of Hesleden Primary School for their magnificent carol singing which once again got the festive season well and truly under way in some style!

Blackhall Christmas Tree lighting ceremony

The residents of Blackhall and Blackhall Rocks braved the cold this evening to come along to the annual ceremony to light the parish council Christmas tree at Chicken's Green in Blackhall Colliery.

Cllr Gaynor Crute, parish council chair, started off this ever popular festive event by introducing the children of Blackhall Colliery primary school and St Joseph's RCVA primary school who then sang a selection of Christmas carols with their usual enthusiasm. Fr Jackson then offered the customary blessing before leading the children in a countdown to the lighting up of the tree.

Many thanks go to the clerk, chairman, staff and members of Monk Hesleden Parish Council for their efforts in pulling the event together, and particular thanks go to the pupils and staff from both Blackhall Colliery and St Joseph's primary schools for adding something special to a ceremony which continues to grow each year in popularity.

Changes to bus timetables in the Peterlee area from next week

Go North East has announced changes to its bus timetable for the Peterlee area, including some for the villages in our patch.

Please follow the link below for more details:

http://newsroom.gonortheast.co.uk/news/changes-to-services-in-the-peterlee-area-from-4-december-198087

Public footpath in Hesleden to be closed from January 2017

Earlier this month we wrote about a proposal by developers to temporarily close Pathway No24 at Hesleden to allow for preparation and reclamation works (please see post dated Thursday 3 November 2016 for background details).

We have now received advance notification that the pathway will be closed from January next year, as shown in the table below:

Footpath 24

Hesleden

Reclamation works

Footpath closure

5 January 2017

4 July 2018

PBU (UK) Ltd

Please note: Having made our concerns known to the licensing and planning sections at county hall we have been assured that, although planning consent has been formally approved, no development or reclamation will be allowed to proceed at this site until specific planning conditions have been met. 

These conditions include addressing our concerns about access, visibility and the risk of traffic accidents at the Gray Avenue/B1281 junction (please see posts dated Thursday 22 September 2016, Wednesday 22 June 2016, Saturday 6 February 2016 & Wednesday 6 January 2016 for details).

Blackhall and Hesleden Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremonies

You know that Christmas isn't far away when Monk Hesleden Parish Council lights up its Christmas trees in Blackhall Colliery and Hesleden.

The details for this year's lighting ceremonies are shown below. We look forward to seeing you there.

  

The lighting service for the Christmas tree at Chickens Green, Blackhall will be held on Monday 5 December 2016 at 4 pm

******
The lighting service for the Christmas tree in Front Street, Hesleden will be held 

on Tuesday 6 December 2016 at 4 pm

******

Drainage works in Middle Street, Blackhall Colliery

We have received notification of roadworks scheduled to take place in Middle Street, Blackhall Colliery.

Full details are shown below:

A1086

Middle Street, Blackhall Colliery

Drainage works

2 way lights (manual control as required)

21 November

25 November

Durham County Council

Environmental issues

Each month either one of us or both of us meets with the parish clerk and members of the parish council's environment sub-committee to coordinate our approach to addressing a number of environmental issues across the parish area.

Issues vary widely and range from planning enforcement, flooding and drainage, litter, dog-fouling, fly-tipping, grass-cutting, street lighting and the general appearance of our villages, all matters that we know are a priority for residents in the parish area.

At the monthly meeting for November, held last week, we took a closer look at a number of issues. Although the following list is by no means exhaustive, these are among some of the more pressing matters for our area at the moment:

Flooding at the entrance to the Co-op store in Middle Street: this is a long running issue with a lengthy history of remedial works (please see image above). The highways section has now confirmed that further works, including drainage and gully investigation and repairs, will be given priority.

Surface water along Middle Street: reports have been received of flooding and surface water at various points along Middle Street, including a particularly persistent area at the top of Fifth Street. We have reported these incidents to the drainage department for investigation.

Eighth Street resurfacing: the poor condition of the road surface was reported for assessment earlier this year but was not deemed to be in need of immediate repair. We have asked that a re-assessment be carried out.

Fly-tipping in rear yards of private properties: sadly this is another recurring problem throughout the village, particularly amongst the former colliery housing stock which is now predominantly in the private-rented sector. We have asked that landlords be identified and requested to secure rear yards against fly-tipping where this is presenting a problem.

Problem parking at Primrose Court: this issue is currently with the police, East Durham Homes and DVLA for their attention.

Traffic flow through Blackhall: we have contacted the highways section and Durham police to ask that a survey be carried out in Blackhall to assess the volume, speed and type of traffic coming through the village. Both agencies have agreed to our request, and have confirmed that a 24 hour a day, 7 days a week traffic monitoring survey will be carried out. The findings from the survey will guide the council and police on which measures, if any, will be recommended to tackle any traffic related issues identified.

Footpaths at Corry Close: the poor condition of the footpaths around this area have been reported for assessment and repair.

Various street lighting and road surface issues: by their nature, these are ongoing matters and we report damage and faults on a daily basis to the relevant departments for assessment and repair work.

There are many other issues we both deal with on a daily basis, and reports on most of these can be found elsewhere on this site. 

Please don't hesitate to get in touch if there are any matters in your area that you think we might be able to help with. We can be contacted on social media (Facebook and Twitter) or at:

rob.crute@durham.gov.uk or lynn.pounder@durham.gov.uk

Temporary road closures at Station Town

We have received notification of temporary road closures to allow for highway resurfacing works in Station Town:

Sections of the C22 (Rodridge Lane) and B1280 (Milbank Terrace) are proposed for closure between 9.30 am and 3.30 pm on both Saturday 26 November and Sunday 27 November 2016.

Prior notification of the closure is to be given to those residents and premises directly affected by the restrictions.

Blackhall Remembers: Remembrance Day Service at Blackhall Welfare

As in years gone by there was another fantastic turnout today for the Remembrance Day service at Blackhall Welfare Park and afterwards at Blackhall Cricket Club.

The service was conducted by Deacon Annabel Graham before wreaths were laid in turn by representatives of Monk Hesleden Parish Council, Durham County Council, Blackhall ex-services organisations (Blackhall Navy Club & Blackhall RAFA), Blackhall Air Training Corps and Blackhall Youth Action Group. Members of the public took the opportunity to lay their personal tributes too.

As ever, the buffet held at Blackhall Cricket Club was very well attended, giving people the opportunity to warm up and have a drink together after the service.

Our thanks go to the parish council for putting the event together, to the representatives of all the organisations named above, and also to Ian Harris who impeccably performed the last post and reveille. Mr Settrey, on behalf of St Andrew's church, and Brooke Dawson from St Joseph's RC primary school read a eulogy for the fallen.

Special thanks also go to the many people of Blackhall and the surrounding area for coming along year after year to offer their respect and gratitude to the brave men and women who gave everything in the course of two world wars.

Blackhall Remembrance Day Service - Sunday 13 November

The Service of Remembrance and Commitment this year will be held on Sunday 13 November at the Memorial in Blackhall Welfare Park. Please congregate at 10.45 am.

Following the traditional service and laying of wreaths members of the public will have the opportunity to lay their personal tributes.

As in previous years we have arranged for a buffet to be made available in the Cricket Club immediately following the service. Everyone will be made welcome so please come along and join us.

Replacement safety handrail for Blackhall Steps

Works to renovate the steps linking Blackhall Scheme Houses with the A1086 Coast Road were completed during the summer. Shortly afterwards we were contacted by residents concerned that the new steps did not have a handrail, leaving them vulnerable to falls (please see post dated Thursday 18 August 2016 for background information).

We followed this query up with the relevant departments at county hall and we are pleased to confirm that the engineer has assured us that a replacement handrail is to be installed as soon as possible:

Councillors

This scheme was undertaken as part of our DCC Terrier Unadopted works.

I have spoken to our Design team who will design a new handrail and have it installed as soon as possible.

Regards, Jonathan

Jonathan Cardy

Engineer – Capital Programme

Planning application for housing development at Blackhall

Although we have yet to receive any formal notification from the council, we have been made aware that a planning application for a housing development adjacent to the B1281 at Blackhall has been submitted to the planning department at county hall for consideration (please see post dated Friday 16 September 2016 for background information).

The county planning committee will make the final decision in due course on whether or not this planning application should be approved. If you have an opinion on this application it is essential that you register your comments, either for or against the proposal, with the planning department as soon as possible using the link below (this link will also direct you to all the relevant information, plans, surveys etc. associated with this application):

http://publicaccess.durham.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=summary&keyVal=OFRLX3GDJR300

If you have any questions about the proposal that you would like to put to the agent acting on behalf of the applicant please contact: 

Craig Stockley: email: craig@stevehes.co.uk or telephone: 01325 628 109

PLEASE NOTE: When planning applications of this nature are open to consultation and public comment we always try to frame our own formal comments in a way that most accurately reflects local opinion. 

With that in mind we intend to reserve our own formal written submission until the end of the consultation period when we might be able to identify a clear local viewpoint on this proposal.

Proposed temporary closure of a Public Right of Way at Hesleden

We have been notified of an intention to temporarily close public right of way FP 24 between the Haswell to Hart walkway and Hesleden WMC. 

The notification we received is reproduced below in red text:

Hello Cllrs

I have been notified of the works below to commence early 2017 for up to 20 months for reclamation works affecting a public footpath linking Front Street/Gray Avenue, Hesleden to the Haswell-Hart Railway path.

An alternative route is proposed via the access along Station Road.

Can you let me know if you have any concerns or comments.

The intention is to temporarily close the public right of way which links the Haswell to Hart walkway and Hesleden WMC and divert walkers along Front Street and back onto the walkway at the bottom of Station Road.

Our immediate concern is that this proposed closure appears to represent the early stages of long-term works to remove the pit heap, a scheme that we opposed earlier this year when it was put before the planning committee at county hall (please see post dated Wednesday 6 January 2016 for background information and full details of our objections).

For the same reasons, and because we feel that a public right of way should remain open to public access, we are minded to oppose the closing up and diversion order. However, we think comments from the community would be particularly helpful in adding weight and balance to our comments.

If you would like to comment on this proposed temporary public right of way closure, or if you have any questions about it, please contact the Licences Team Leader at: steven.galloway@durham.gov.uk or 03000 267 095

Traffic survey in Middle Street, Blackhall Colliery

Having noticed what seems to be a significant change in the type and volume of traffic passing through Blackhall recently we've contacted the highways department at county hall and the traffic management section of Durham police to ask for a traffic survey to be carried out.

Both have confirmed that a full-scale, week-long survey will be done along the A1086, the findings of which will guide the police and council on which actions, if any, need to be taken to ensure the safety of residents and motorists in this area.

We have also asked that parking enforcement officers give some attention to illegal parking outside the shopping area in Middle Street. This follows complaints we've received from shop owners and pedestrians about near-misses as vehicles mount the kerb to park.

We have published below the response we've received from the police confirming steps to be taken in addressing our concerns:

It appears from your e-mail that there are two issues to be addressed namely that of speeding and parking.

Speeding

Ordinarily we would consider the use of Community Speed Watch in the area to gain an idea of the current extent of the problem. However, with regard to Middle Street there is not really suitable deployment locations. Given this, as I have no current speed data to hand, I will request DCC undertakes a full 7 day 24 hour speed survey. From the results we can then see the level of offending and decide what, if any, action can be taken to address local concerns in this matter.

Parking

As the majority of the area is governed by parking restrictions I will refer this aspect of your concerns to the Parking Services team at Durham County Council to consider enforcement attention.

In relation to parking obstruction, I’m sure Ian will act accordingly if he witnesses any offences during his patrols in the locality.

Will re-contact you once I’m in receipt of the speed survey data.

Regards

Traffic Management Officer

Cleveland and Durham Specialist Operations Unit

Wesleyan Road

Spennymoor

Co. Durham 

Our objections to street lighting reductions for the A1086 between Blackhall and Horden

The council began a round of consultation recently asking members of the public to comment on its proposals to remove street lighting along some of the roads in between our villages as part of its ongoing street lighting and energy reduction policy (please see posts dated Tuesday 18 October 2016, Wednesday 22 June 2016 & Wednesday 19 November 2014 for background details and links to our earlier objections).

We have been consistent in our absolute opposition to the removal of any street lighting in any part of our ward and we remain unequivocally opposed to the proposed removal of street lighting in the particular area now under consideration.

We have submitted our objections to the relevant department and we would encourage anyone sharing our concerns to do the same. 

We have published below our objections in full. Please feel free to use them as a guide if you wish to record your own objections:

Street Lighting and Energy Reduction proposals to remove street lighting in parts of Blackhall Colliery and High Hesleden (using RSR 130, RSR 230 & RSR 231A data)

Response of County Councillor Rob Crute & County Councillor Lynn Pounder (Blackhalls Division):

With regard to proposals as they relate to RSR 130 & RSR 230 (at High Hesleden) we note that our objections to street lighting removals in these locations were submitted in 2013/14. In addition, we note that the data used in these reviews are 3 years out of date and no longer fully relevant.

Our objections to the removal of street lighting in these locations remain.

With regard to proposals as they relate to RSR 231A (A1068, Coast Road between Blackhall Colliery & Horden), we note that these proposals ought to refer to the A1086 (rather than the A1068 as stated in the council's documentation).

In recording our objections to the removal of street lighting at this location we would make the following comments:  

• We accept that PIA data reflects the number of accidents over the past 5 years. However we would ask the council to consider the relatively high number of accidents on this road, some of them fatal, in the years leading up to the start of the PIA data period
•         The A1086 is a vital link between two communities with strong social links and, as such, is a very busy walking route for many residents of both villages, including children and young people. We have concerns that removing street lighting on this stretch of road will have a huge impact in terms of social isolation
•         Further, the A1086 at this location is a key part of the walk to school route for Blackhall children attending Dene School (on request, the school has confirmed that there are currently 78 such children). We are concerned that removal of street lighting on the A1086 at this location will pose a serious and unacceptable risk to the safety of young people walking to and from school
•         The road at this location leads to and from a number of residential estates. Residents are frequently dropped off and collected by private vehicles and taxis on the A1086. It is clear to us that the removal of street lighting on this road, particularly at these points, greatly increases the already high risk of serious collisions and accidents
•        The A1086 is a major public transport link between Hartlepool in the south and the towns and many villages to the north and west of Blackhall. It has a number of bus stops at this location and we believe that removing street lights here would significantly increase the risk of accidents
•         The highway at this particular location is shielded on both sides by a constant line of thick and high trees which blocks the natural light on to the road. Clearly removing street lighting at this location would make a bad situation even worse, particularly during the hours of darkness when even limited natural light will be blocked
•         The A1086 at this location passes directly through the Castle Eden Dene nature reserve at an elevated point. It is also very close to the coast. These factors combined, alongside vegetation shielding as referred to above, mean that the highway surface is especially prone to frost and ice. This area is also susceptible to fog and coastal mist all year round
•         Finally we would draw your attention to the propensity for significant and serious landslips in this area. The most recent one occurred fairly recently, in 2012/13, meaning that the entire stretch of road was partially closed for almost 2 years. Clearly the removal of street lighting at this location would have a significantly limiting impact on the ability to remedy any future landslips.

In submitting our objections we can confirm that we have listened to the concerns of our residents at many ward surgeries and other public consultation events. They share our worries about the seriously detrimental effect of street lighting removals in this area, particularly in terms of risk to the personal safety of pedestrians, motorists and other road users.

Residents also agree with us that street lighting and energy reduction proposals have a disproportionate and unfair impact on rural communities, as opposed to urban areas which remain unaffected by the programme.

We fully support the council’s recommendation to improve and replace the vehicle restraints and concrete fencing adjacent to the A1086 at this location.

Accordingly, we wish to record in the strongest terms our objections to the proposals for street lighting removal at these locations.

Cllr Rob Crute & Cllr Lynn Pounder, Blackhall Division, Durham County Council.

Progress with residents' request for traffic calming at Hazel Drive

As reported on this site last week we handed a residents' petition to the county council requesting traffic calming measures at Hazel Drive in Hesleden (please see post dated Friday 14 October 2016 for background information).

Petitions can often take a long time to go through the formal system at county hall so rather than delay matters unnecessarily we decided to contact the highways section at county hall direct to ask them to start the assessment process used to decide whether traffic calming measures would be suitable or effective at any given location.

We have now received confirmation from the traffic assets senior manager that this process has started. The assessment process itself can be fairly lengthy, mainly because of legal issues, a statutory period of public consultation and funding application issues, but the sooner it starts the sooner the council's highway's engineers will be able to assess the need for traffic calming measures in Hazel Drive.

We have published below in full the traffic assets manager's response to our request:

Dear Councillors

In response to your request for consideration of the provision of traffic calming for Hazel Drive in Hesleden, I can provide the following information. I should advise that there is a process we have to follow when considering requests for traffic calming. 

The first part of the process is to consider factual vehicle speed data – this is generally from speed surveys or information from the Police via Community Speed Watch activities.  Unfortunately we have not received a similar request previously or had complaints of vehicle speeds therefore I do not have any speed survey data which I could consider at this time.  Therefore I will arrange for survey work to be carried out to obtain this data. This data will then be analysed to determine the severity and extent of the issue. We also analyse any accident data from personal injury accidents to see if there are any particular causation factors which may influence the provision of a scheme. Once this has been done I will discuss the findings with you. This can usually take a month depending upon demands for surveys.

Assuming a scheme can be justified from the data analysis, we will then provide a draft scheme which should comply with the legal requirements for traffic calming provision. To give you an idea, initially I would envisage three humps on the main through road and a single one on the northern loop round the green.

The next stage is to prepare the necessary funding applications and seek approval. Unfortunately this part of the process can be lengthy (up to 3 months) depending upon when the board meetings are to consider/approve the applications.

A detailed design is then completed and this will be subject to consultation in accordance with the legal requirements. In addition to this we also consult with the residents who are likely to be affected by the scheme. The consultation period is a minimum of three weeks.  We then consider any objections we receive against the scheme and whether there are any measures or changes which can ease concerns. 

The next part of the process is to prepare reports seeking approvals to initiate the legal process. The proposed traffic calming scheme is then formally advertised and open to legal challenge.

If after all this there are outstanding objections which cannot be resolved, they will have to be reported to the Council’s Highways Committee which will consider the arguments. The Committee could require the scheme to be re-designed or abandoned if it is not approved.

Assuming approval of the scheme we are now at a position to place an order for the works to be constructed. The lead in time for this can be up to 2 months while a slot in the works programme is found and materials ordered.

I hope this information is useful and I can confirm that in accordance with your request I have commenced the process. Should you require further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Kind regards

Traffic Assets Senior Engineer

Street lighting between Blackhall Colliery and Horden

We have reported street lighting defects on the A1086 Coast Road which links Blackhall Colliery with Horden via Castle Eden Dene, and we have also raised our concerns about the trees overhanging the road which have the effect of blocking light from those lamps that are not defective.

We have reproduced below our email in full:

We wish to raise our concerns about faulty street lights and overhanging trees on the A1086 Coast Road which links Blackhall Colliery with Horden.

This is a very busy road and a main public transport link to and from the towns and many villages in the East Durham area. It is also a well-used walk-to-school route for many students from the Blackhall area attending school in Peterlee.

Some lights are out on the Horden side and several are also out on the Blackhall side, making visibility for motorists and pedestrians extremely poor during the hours of darkness. Even in those few places where the street lighting is in working order visibility is impaired because of the overhanging trees, particularly on the approach to Blackhall Colliery between Castle Eden Dene and the Welfare Park.

In the hope of avoiding any unnecessary danger or risk to the safety of our residents we would be grateful if you would forward this email to the relevant section(s) at DCC and ask for their immediate attention.

We are aware that street lighting at this location is recommended for removal as part of the council's ongoing street lighting and energy reduction programme. This is unacceptable and we feel very strongly that plunging this stretch of road into almost total darkness would pose a severe and direct threat to the safety of pedestrians and motorists alike. 

Accordingly we will oppose any attempts to remove street lighting on the road between Blackhall Colliery and Horden.

We will be publishing our objections here later this week but in the meantime if you share our concerns about proposals to remove street lighting on the A1086 in this area please let council officials know about it at: nick.harness@durham.gov.uk

Petition for traffic calming measures at Hazel Drive, Hesleden

Residents of Hazel Drive in Hesleden have presented a petition to Monk Hesleden Parish Council requesting traffic calming measures in their street, citing speeding vehicles and pedestrian safety as factors.

As Durham County Council is the highway authority dealing with matters of this nature we have received the petition from the parish clerk and we've handed it over to the democratic services office at county hall.

The formal process for dealing with public petitions can be quite slow and arduous so, in order to avoid unnecessary delays, we have also contacted the highways section at county hall and we have asked them to assess the potential for installing traffic calming measures at Hazel Drive. We have told them of residents' concerns about speeding traffic and the risk it poses to pedestrians, and children in particular.

If you are aware of any particular areas which you feel may benefit from traffic calming measures please contact us direct and we'll forward any requests to the relevant department at county hall for assessment. 

Please note however that traffic calming measures will only be installed where specific conditions and guidelines are met following investigation and assessment by county highway engineers.

Possible solution to parking problem in Hesleden

At a ward surgery at Hesleden Methodist chapel last week we heard of problems associated with parking along the lane between Front Street and Harold Wilson Drive.

Following up on a suggested solution we contacted the highways section at county hall to ask if vacant land toward the Station Road side of the street (pictured above) was available for development into parking bays. We have now received the following response which sets out a couple of options to consider:

Councillors

From first look at it on Google, it would be possible to create parking bays in the grassed area.  However, this land is now owned by the County Durham Housing Group (CDHG) and therefore it would be for them to make this provision. That said, by using your Neighbourhood Budget there are two ways forward:

1             By CDHG agreeing to the works and offering the parking bay up for adoption as public highway. This is a more costly approach as the construction will have to be to full standard (i.e. 450mm thick) although it will mean that the County Council will maintain in the future.

2             By CDHG agreeing to the works and future maintenance of the parking bay.  This is a cheaper option as we could use a thinner construction.

The cost of the works will depend upon which option you go for and the size of the parking bay.

We think it's important that residents are asked for their opinion on this matter so as soon as we have an indication of the costs and possible options we will update on progress and see what residents think. 

If any of the options above prove to be affordable we'll make sure that residents have a say on whether or not they want parking bays at this location. However if costs are prohibitive we will need to look for alternative provision.

Please note that we think it's important to find a solution that is acceptable to everyone so no development will take place without the consent of all residents at this location.