The Leader of the Council and Chairman of Cabinet, Business, Economic Development and Property introduced the report regarding the Queen Street junction arrangements.

The Chairman informed Cabinet that approval for the project had already been through Cabinet and this was next phase of the Maidenhead Station Improvement Scheme project.  Consultation on this phase had been undertaken including discussion at the Maidenhead Town Forum. 

The overall project was valued at £4.5 million and was mainly funded by Thames Valley Berkshire Local Enterprise Partnership who had approved the business case for the overall scheme.

This phase would see the Queen Street / A308 junction being redesigned with the right-turn for motorists from Queen Street removed to create improved facilities for pedestrians and cyclists.  A pilot had been run throughout the summer and all three statutory services had said there would be no impact upon their operations. 

The consultation summary was attached to the report and the Chairman provided the following highlights, pedestrians and cyclists were overwhelmingly in support of the scheme, 70% of people believe it would improve connectivity between the town centre and the station, 67% felt it would improve public space, 66% felt it would result in better safety for pedestrians and 64% felt it would be better for cyclists.  60% of people believed it would improve the junction, however only 40% believed it would improve traffic flow.  The chairman reported that he felt that this was due to the temporary traffic lights not being able to sync with the permanent lights. 

The Deputy Leader of Council, HR, IT, Legal Services (Including Performance Management) and Windsor mentioned that with the Braywick leisure centre, the York Road development and this project improving the infrastructure of Maidenhead.  This was part of making Maidenhead the best it could be.

The Lead Member for Finance and Ascot said he had attended a recent LGA course where all of the five leaders of councils across the country presenting said how important ‘Place’ was, having a place where people wanted to live and work.  The Lead Member for Planning and Maidenhead reiterated these sentiments and also mentioned that building a place to live was about people as well as building.

The Lead Member for Environmental Services, Climate Change, Sustainability and Culture said she approved of the scheme but would have liked to have seen more biodiversity such as green walls.

          Resolved unanimously that:  Cabinet notes the report and:

i)          Endorses that the junction improvements at Queen Street / A308 as previously approved as part of the business case and set out in Appendix A be delivered