Neil Walter, Parking Principal, to update the Forum on the blue badge parking.

Neil Walter, Parking Principal, stated the Town Hall car park had been removed to make way for development and that the five blue badge bays attached to that site had now gone. There were to be significant changes to Park Street and St Ives Road that would affect blue badge holders. Phase three of the Chapel Arches scheme next to The Bear pub was underway and the drawing he circulated showed the changes to the Colonnade. All parking bays had been removed except for the loading bay. Parking bays were now being located on the south side, where there was no dropped kerb or access to the pavement and drivers will open their doors onto a highway opposite a loading bay.

Neil Walter advised that whilst colleagues from Highways were involved in these changes he was not and would have expressed concerns regarding the changes which impacted on blue badge holders. Of the new parking bays, two were electric charging points and there was also a taxi rank. The Vice Chairman acknowledged that installing charging points on the footpath would restrict movement on the pavement and therefore the new parking bays would be unviable. The Parking Principal noted that the only viable solution was to use the loading bay on the north side so there would be direct access onto the footpath, however that meant removing the loading bay. He added he would make that suggestion to Highways and that Councillor Stimson had said she would take the comments back to the Highways team and try to find a solution. If the loading bay were to be made into parking bays it would accommodate three cars. The Parking Principal said he was happy to go back to the Highways Team with any suggestions.

The Parking Principal advised that he had asked for changes to the road outside the Town Hall on St Ives Road to make it more accessible. It was acknowledged that disabled parking provision on Park Street is currently inadequate and not user-friendly. People to Places would use the existing bays and if they were full they would have to stop on raised crossings or use the loading bay. The Parking Principal had spoken to Councillor Stimson about use of the crescent outside the Town Hall for drop-offs and pick-ups and Councillor Stimson had said she would take that forward and find out if it could be done.

Disabled bays on St Ives Road would stay and the only ones lost would be the limited waiting bays outside the library. Whilst this was not ideal the Parking Principal could ask for bays to be installed in that area. The Chairman stated resident services were held in the library and people were going into the Town Hall so having adequate provision was necessary as it was a key place in the town centre that disabled people would use. The Parking Principal responded that it might be best to keep the parking on the library side of the street and take the bays away on the Town Hall side and then install a crossing to get across to the Town Hall. The Chairman confirmed access was needed on both sides of the car, so any solution that just protects from the highway in this location was not adequate. The Parking Principal said the kerb could be levelled with the surface on the Town Hall side so drivers were safe exiting and the pavement needed to be flat.

The Chairman asked if there had been a suggestion of using the Town Hall garden for disabled parking. The Parking Principal replied that was not in his remit as it was not on the highway but, Councillor Stimson was going to talk to colleagues about that. He added that using the space outside the Registry Office for disabled parking also needed to be discussed with those colleagues as that was also not in his remit. Councillor Stimson had the plans and he would talk to her to see what progress had been made. It would be ideal to make the changes as the regeneration works were going on, instead of waiting till they were finished and then making the changes.

ACTION: Neil Walter to discuss blue badge parking provision further with colleagues in Highways Services and liaise with Councillor Stimson on current plans

Councillor Coppinger stated he was glad Councillor Stimson was taking all the suggestions forward as he did not see why the area around the Town Hall could not be disabled-only parking. The Vice Chairman stated it spoke volumes on issues of access in design and it was disappointing that the professional experts were missing these big things out and ultimately not treating abled and disabled people equally. The Vice Chairman acknowledged that existing street furniture did not leave enough space for a mobility scooter and she wondered if any equality impact assessments had been done at the time the Town Hall car park had been sold off.

Robin Pemberton stated there was a prime facility in the Town Hall but there was no parking within 50 metres of the entrance as spaces would be lost and were already limited. The Chairman asked if when schemes were planned all aspects of inclusion were given a fair space. A lot of Councillors were on the Planning Committee but none were dedicated to look at disabled design. There was a strong case to have a Councillor that represents people with disability on the planning committees. Councillor Coppinger responded that he could not involve himself with planning as it was a conflict of interest due to him being a lead member, however he liked the idea and did not disagree as long as what was required sat within planning law. If decisions made were not covered by planning law, the developer could get any decision overturned at appeal. The Chairman stated so many other Local Authorities managed to do so. Councillor Coppinger commented that whilst plans may have been approved, the focus was on the building and not everything else. Robin Pemberton stated it was incumbent for the planning team to look at access and ensure accessibility. Councillor Coppinger replied the design for Maidenhead was for less cars, not more.

The Parking Principal stated Grove Road car park was part of another development scheme and there was no blue badge parking currently part of the scheme. He did not think the developer was starting works until 2021/22 and so he was happy to discuss where blue bays could be located on the site. It could be two areas, one at each end of the car park which would mean the three of four bays lost at the Town Hall car park could be relocated to there. The Vice Chairman said it was a good idea but she did not think it would solve all the problems.

The Parking Principal explained that the North Yard of the Town Hall was used predominantly by the Job Centre staff under lease, so there were currently only two or three spaces for council staff to use. The Chairman asked if the Parking Principal could emphasise to Councillor Stimson that two permanent disabled spaces were required, one at the front and one at the back of the Town Hall.