Agenda item

Interview with Rob Jarman, Head of Planning, Jonathan Morris, Principal Transport Officer and Paul Lulham, KCC Highways.

The Head of Planning, Rob Jarman and Paul Lulham from Kent County Council (KCC) Highways, provided an overview of the report.

Members discussed the report and agreed that the proposals needed extensive consultation and suggested that Cabinet put in place a methodology for public consultation. 

There was concern expressed by the Committee that there would not be enough funding available to support the proposals outlined in the draft Strategy, namely that Maidstone would have new housing but these would in effect be  islands without the appropriate infrastructure to support them. It was explained that the Draft Integrated Transport Strategy had been developed in partnership with KCC. The strategy was a 14 year plan and emphasised the need to prioritise infrastructure delivery. It was noted that some of the funding for infrastructure would come from Community Infrastructure Levy. 

Members expressed apprehensions over the proposed bus lane along the A274, believing that this would make the area unattractive, ruining the landscape and could be detrimental to the Borough. The Committee requested that this option be re-assessed. They noted that this was a multi model transport strategy with the aims of improving the town centre, public realm and making public transport a more attractive option.

It was resolved that:

a)  the option to install a bus lane on the A274 be re-assessed; and

b)  Cabinet put in place a methodology for public consultation.