BOROUGH OF POOLE
TRANSPORT ADVISORY GROUP– 31 JULY 2008
REPORT OF HEAD OF TRANSPORTATION SERVICES
PROPOSALS FOR OLD ORCHARD SQUARE
1.0Matter for Consideration
1.1.To consider proposals for environmental enhancements at Old Orchard Square.
2. Recommendation
2.1It is recommended that approval be given in principle to the scheme shown in Appendix A
2.2That further discussion take place with Ward Members, residents groups, taxi and bus representatives with regards to the location of parking, taxi rank and bus stop within the scheme. Recommendations from this meeting will be brought back to a future meeting of this Group to approve the advertising of the associated Traffic Regulation Orders
2.3That the subsequent detail of the surface finishes and public artwork within the scheme be considered and approved by the Head of Transportation in consultation with Ward Members, Portfolio Holder and Chairman of Planning Committee
- Information
3.1The Developer of Old Orchard Plaza (formerly Old Orchard House) has contributed £337,000 to the enhancement of Old Orchard Square as a result of the approval for its conversion from offices to residential accommodation.
3.2The main features of the Highway elements of the schemes are shown on the plan in Appendix A and are summarised as follows:
• A raised road to pavement level to mirror the narrow section of the Lower High Street, possibly applying a different surface treatment.
• Providing a raised platform across the Old Orchard / New Orchard / High Street junction as an indication to drivers that pedestrians may be present.
• Replacement of the existing controlled pedestrian crossing with two more open signal crossings on either side of the junction.
• Removal of existing railings and other unnecessary street furniture and road markings so drivers and pedestrians interact on a less formal basis.
• Extension of pavement features and changed surface treatment across Old Orchard in order to visually tie the two sides of the High Street together.
• Road improvements to encourage motorists to slow down and be aware of pedestrians and other road users.
• Extension of 20 mph limit and controlled parking zone to include the Old Orchard junction.
• Improvement of highway features such as surface materials and street furniture.
4.Urban Design
4.1This urban design concept is in line with the modern design principles of the Department for Transports recent publication “Manual for Streets” in that it creates a ‘ shared space ‘ where the traditional hierarchy of vehicles over pedestrians is reversed ( see Appendix B ). The design is intended to ensure traffic travels more slowly and considerately through the space as a result of not being so clearly segregated by traditional street furniture and full height kerbs. The design will cater for accessibility and visual impairment issues.
4.2The enhancements to Old Orchard Square represent an important opportunity
to create a functional urban space in the town centre of Poole. The intention is
that this scheme will create an area which has a ‘cultural‘ feel and is pleasant
in its own right as well as enhancing the route for pedestrians making their
way between the upper and lower sections of the High Street, and Poole
Quay.
4.3This would be achieved through:
• The introduction of attractive, quality materials, visual elements and landscaping layout.
• Rationalisation of existing signage and barriers into more minimal, less cluttered designs and configuration.
• Retention of historical elements of lighting and street furniture where possible, but to replace with attractive, quality designs in keeping with the general ‘feel’ of the square where appropriate.
• Incorporation of an ‘Installations Space’ for small-scale performances of musicians / street entertainers.
4.4The ‘Installations Space’, and other elements of the scheme will be developed
through involvement of artist Simon Watkinson, who researches the history of
an area and consults with the local community to inform his designs. This
artist has had his work successfully implemented in other urban design
schemes elsewhere in the country an example of which is shown as Appendix D .
5.Consultation
5.1These proposals were subject to a period of consultation closing on 27th June.
Consultation leaflets were distributed to local residents and businesses as well
as statutory and local representative bodies. A display was also available in the Tourism Welcome Centre on Poole Quay between 2nd and 6th June for which officers were available each morning to explain the proposals.
5.2Representations have been received from 30 individuals and 5 organisations.
The results of the consultation and a summary of the comments received is
included in Appendix C attached to this report. The representations in full will
be available for viewing within the Democratic and Legal Office for members
of the Transport Advisory Group.
5.3The scheme was also considered by the Hamworthy East, Hamworthy West
and Poole Town Area Committee on 9th July. From this consultation it is clear
that there is some considerable concern from some local residents over the
location of the taxi rank. Representations have been received from residents
in Market Street over the noise of taxis leaving this area late at night,
suggesting that the rank be moved to Old Orchard.
5.4However there have also been representations from residents of Drake Court
saying that to move the rank here would create unacceptable noise. From the
viewpoint of the taxi trade, their main criteria is that as this is the busiest rank
in the town the taxis need to be clearly visible in the High Street. Clearly there
are still issues to be resolved here and so it is proposed that a meeting take
place with stakeholders, including Ward Members, residents groups, taxi and
bus representatives and a further report be brought back to this Group with
their views.
5.5There is also an outstanding consideration of re-routing Route ONE down
through the Lower High Street instead of turning left into Castle Street. While
this would involve the loss of further parking spaces in the Lower High Street, there would be considerable advantage as it would bring high numbers of visitors and local people through this road and also extend the bus service past the Waterfront Museum and the central section of the Quay. It is proposed that this matter is also discussed at the meeting of the stakeholders.
JULIAN McLAUGHLIN
Head of Transportation Services
Appendix A Scheme Layout
Appendix B Shared Space Principles
Appendix C Consultation Summary
Appendix D Example of Artists Work
Name and Telephone Number of Officer Contact
Ken Pearce (01202 262041)
TAG310708T3K
APPENDIX A
APPENDIX B
Shared Space Principles
Shared Space is a new approach to public spaces – an approach that exploits the many varied purposes of each place. Shared Space strives to combine rather than separate the various functions of public spaces. In this way Shared Space improves the quality of public spaces and the living environment for people, without needing to restrict or banish motorised traffic.
The examples below are from England and mainland Europe and show how the space at Old Orchard could appear and how it could be used.
The road user must be able to tell from the
space, i.e. the road and its surroundings,
which behaviour is appropriate and required.
Leave people to negotiate the right of way
and the speed reduces automatically.
Shared Space views public spaces first and foremost as spaces for people. Public spaces
should therefore do justice to the various functions and meanings these spaces have for people. The traffic function, which has characterized the space in terms of layout for the last decades, then becomes an equal of the other functions.
APPENDIX C
OLD ORCHARD SQUARE CONSULTATION: SUMMARY
No. / For / Against / Comments1 / X / Additional signals will make crossing safer. Need to improve route to Guildhall
2 / X / Anything that adds to the enjoyment of the area for those arriving by non-car modes is a plus
3 / X / Seating areas required, some covered if possible. Needs an "arcade" with seating and lighting.
4 / X / Retain the trees and keep "Old World" appearance
5 / X / X / Parking is a big problem so taking away four spaces won't help. Provide discounted short term parking in the MSCP
6 / X / Disagree with the retention of 4 spaces - there is plenty of space in the MSCP. Implement a weight limit in Old Town. Problems at New Street / Market Street junction
7 / X / Providing 2 crossing points may cause confusion. Removal of railings will encourage jay walking. Right turn filter lane could be difficult to control / enforce.
8 / X
9 / X
10 / X / Good ideas for the area.
11 / X / Make lower High Street ped. zone a 10am to 6pm and ban parking.
12 / X / Leave the parking alone - it is already very difficult for residents to park free on street.
13 / X / Drivers using shared space will need clear views ahead - why permit car or taxi parking? Relocate taxi rank into Old Orchard to reduce traffic movements in the New Street / Market Street area. Are 4 spaces necessary when there is a large MSCP nearby?
14 / X / Consider relocating the taxi rank out of the immediate area.
15 / X / Additional traffic lights will decrease flows and cause congestion. No pedestrian / vehicle conflict in junction mouth. Further loss of on street residents parking. Alteration to paving in Lower High Street hasn't worked. Need to relocate taxi rank has been ignored - it causes noise and disturbance to local residents. Waste of money that could be better spent elsewhere in the town.
16 / X / Basic concept / performance area / exhibition space OK. Provide 50m long open shelter, no sides, adjacent to road train stop. This would provide a covered exhibition area for artists, as in B'mth, and provide shelter for people waiting for land train or when raining - possible Arts Council funding? (The use of Heras type security fencing to secure art exhibitions should not be permitted)
17 / X / These improvements are being done for Sainsbury's, not Poole. They only affect the area around the new store.
Improve all the Lower High Street at the same time.
18 / X / Concerns about the name of the square - suggests Corn Market Square (the old bank building was the Corn Market)
Resite the King Charles plaque to a more visible location.
19 / X / Good to see parking removed
Quality materials are very important
20 / X
21 / X
22 / X / Move the taxis away - they spoil the space
23 / X / Relocate the taxi rank into Old Orchard to allow better egress from area without disturbing Old Town residents.
24 / X / Carry out a study to see if the taxi rank can be removed from High Street into Old Orchard. Moving the rank will reduce the cabs travelling through the Old Town, reduce clutter in the area, reduce late night disturbance in the Old Town area, open up the view and give a more "continental" experience.
Due to high rise buildings the light and space that was once a key part of the Old Town has been lost. What should be a key part of the resident and visitor experience should be reclaimed.
25 / X / Examine the possibility of moving the taxi rank into Old Orchard
Moving the taxi rank would make the area more attractive, permit better views across the square and allow the area to become a focal point. It would also make it easier to accommodate special events.
26 / X / The section of High Street between New Street and The Quay also needs attention.
Street cleaning is currently well below standard.
Speed limit is still being ignored, particularly by motorcycles.
27 / X / The Lower High Street area needs more interesting retail outlets, eg a fishmonger.
28 / X / Welcome the changes to the pedestrian crossing, particularly the removal of the extraneous street furniture.
Concerned about the reduction in on-street parking and would prefer the number to stay the same.
Concerned about the "public art". Would prefer something traditionally artistic rather than "modern"
Where is the King Charles plaque to be re-sited - the location outside Old Orchard House was wrong.
29 / X / Support the concept of linking the two section of High Street, thereby reducing the priority given to motor traffic along Old / New Orchard.
The raised surfacing within the junction, together with distinguishing colour / texture will highlight change in priorities and slow traffic down at that point.
When 20mph limits were agreed for Poole Old Town it was agreed that New Orchard / Old Orchard would remain at 30mph.
30 / X / The volume of traffic travelling down Old Orchard from The Quay is so great that the only way of turning right into High Street is when the Pelican crossing is red.
Raising the carriageway will encourage pedestrians to walk in the road, daring cars to hit them - keep the separation.
The taxi rank needs expanding.
Need a taxi shelter and much better signage for users.
Taxi rank needs better markings to stop private cars parking on it.
Cannot understand this continual drive to let pedestrians have more control over traffic.
31 / X / Proposals are not of sufficient benefit to justify the expense involved.
Would support if taxi rank moved into Old Orchard.
32 / - / - / No particular preference but would like to see the taxi rank moved to New Orchard.
33 / X / Carry out a study to see if the taxi rank can be removed from High Street into Old Orchard.
Moving the rank will reduce the cabs travelling through the Old Town, reduce clutter in the area, reduce late night disturbance in the Old Town area and open up the view.
Make Lower High Street a ped zone 10:00am to 6:00pm to reduce danger to pedestrians and stop parking on the footways.
34 / X / Co-ordinate this work with the High Street Study
Need to take a wider view of transportation in the Town Centre South and work with the community to develop an overall plan encompassing the Quay Thistle and Silo sites, Orchard Square, the West Quay Road development, the new bridge and the power station site.
Create a larger "one way" system around the town using North Street, Lagland Street, New Orchard, Old Orchard and West Street, which would divert traffic to the Quay from Hungerhill via North Street and Lagland Street leaving New and Old Orchard as the exit route.
Relocate the taxi rank into Old Orchard, using the space created by the one way system.
Insufficient detail of proposed furniture or surfacing to comment.
35 / X
36 / X / Keep the Taxis where they are, it is the best place for them they would cause congestion if moved to Old Orchard.
37 / X / Against the signal layout. Scheme is a “fait accompli”. Money should spread over the area.
28 / 7 /
TOTAL
OLD ORCHARD SQUARE CONSULTATION: SUMMARY OF COMMENTS
No. / Comments12 / Move the Taxi Rank to Old Orchard
4 / Retain Parking
4 / Improve all the Lower High Street as well,.
3 / New crossing facility will be confusing and be unsafe.
2 / Improves the area for pedestrians
2 / Provide covered area for both displays and Taxi queue
2 / Move the King Charles plaque to a more prominent (historical) site
2 / A more comprehensive scheme needs to be considered for the Old Town Area.
1 / Will make area safer
1 / Welcome the concept of space for Art and Entertainment
1 / Good ideas
1 / Needs covered seating
1 / Keep the trees
1 / Make the Lower High Street pedestrianised
1 / Rename the area ” Corn Market” to retain heritage.
1 / Against the signal layout.
1 / Remove all Parking
APPENDIX D
1