Kings Heath & Moseley Places for People
Results updated 22 Mar 2022
We would again like to thank everyone who responded to the public consultation on Kings Heath & Moseley Places for People, held in late 2021. Thank you also for your patience in allowing us the time to carefully consider the responses and representations received and to formulate a way forward.
From the beginning, this project has seen strong feelings expressed from a range of perspectives. We are conscious that there is no one solution which will satisfy everyone in the area. In general, people in the community agree that action needs to be taken to reduce carbon emissions, air pollution and congestion, but the difficult question is how this should be done. The responses to this consultation show that the options we presented have some but not full support from people in the area.
We are very clear that doing nothing is not an option. To reach net zero carbon, to improve air quality and to enable our growing population to travel around the city efficiently, we must take action to reduce trips taken by private car.
A decision about the measures currently in place needs to be taken before 22 April, when the current, Experimental Traffic Regulation Orders will expire. We are planning, at that time to convert these into full Traffic Regulation Orders, with the current measures remaining in place as a ‘holding position’. However, in the summer, we will take detailed plans for the whole area to the Council’s Cabinet to ask for their approval to implement a revised area wide scheme.
A number of key concerns were raised at consultation, and the revised scheme seeks to mitigate for these. For example, speeding traffic was noted across the area, so we will bring in new 20mph speed limits and add physical traffic calming to Billesley Lane. Traffic on Vicarage Road was raised by many people; our revised scheme will allow for the right turn into A435 Alcester Road to be re-opened to general traffic and will include upgrades to the signals at the Red Lion junction.
Many consultation responses also indicated a preference for one-way streets over modal filters. In response, the revised scheme has fewer modal filters, with one-way street used instead where possible.
Respondents also noted that on-street parking on the High Street is still suspended using temporary barriers and have asked for a permanent solution. We will permanently widen the footway in these locations, with provision for loading where business need has been identified.
This way forward has been considered carefully and extensively by officers and the Kings Heath & Moseley Places for People Project Board (local Councillors and MPs) and we believe this represents an appropriate balance between responding to the consultation feedback and carrying out our duties to implement very necessary policies to respond to the climate emergency, reduce car trips and enable active travel in local neighbourhoods.
Will continue to engage with the local community, including residents, businesses and local representatives, and the Project Board will continue to oversee the project as we work together to shape Places for People in Kings Heath and Moseley, and to develop an exemplar which can rolled out in other parts of Birmingham.
Files:
- Consultation report, 9.3 MB (PDF document)
- Full update statement - March 2022, 779.0 KB (PDF document)
Overview
Places for People in Kings Heath and Moseley aims to reduce traffic in residential neighbourhoods so that it is safer for people to walk and cycle, and nicer to be outside for children to play and neighbours to chat.
In many parts of Birmingham, residents find their streets are busy with traffic, particularly when people are taking shortcuts to avoid main roads. When traffic is reduced the neighbourhood becomes quieter, the air is cleaner, and streets feel safer.
The principle of Places for People is that residents can continue to drive onto their street, have visitors, get deliveries, etc, but it is made harder to drive straight through the area.
The story so far
Last year, we introduced temporary measures in parts of Kings Heath and Moseley, most notably placing large planters and bollards to prevent motorised vehicles from using side streets to cut through and avoid main roads. Most of these changes were made on the west side of Kings Heath High Street, with just a few to the east.
These measures caused considerable controversy, and we received a lot of feedback from the local community, both through our formal engagement and outside this, with numerous conversations, emails, meetings and site visits taking place over the following months. What is very apparent from the feedback received is that people care deeply about Kings Heath and Moseley: they want it to be safe, welcoming and accessible for everyone, for local business to thrive, and for emissions to be reduced or eliminated.
Since the scheme was implemented, we have responded to your concerns where possible and made some changes, for example by moving the planters on Grange Road, supporting businesses on York Road to get vehicle access for their deliveries and changing timings of traffic lights on Vicarage Road. At the same time, we have stood firm on keeping the scheme in place and allowing time for it to ‘bed in’, knowing that changes to travel behaviour don’t all happen overnight.
You said, we did
In winter 2020/21 we conducted a review of the Places for People project delivered in Kings Heath and Moseley, alongside other schemes implemented during COVID-19, and in February/March 2021 we asked for your views to inform phase two of the project. We have also looked at research from other organisations, including the Department for Transport’s Residents’ Survey and Transport for All’s Pave the Way report. As expected, opinions remain divided, some people would like the whole thing scrapped, some feel the measures are not nearly enough and more radical action is needed, and many sit somewhere in between.
Feedback identified some general issues in the area, including too much traffic, dangerous driving and not enough safe cycle routes. Some people also told us about streets where these problems were especially present. On social media, people were concerned that the measures made it more difficult for emergency vehicles to access the area.
Where possible, the new proposals aim to tackle these issues: reducing the number of vehicles using many streets, an option for traffic calming, contraflow cycling on one way streets (so cyclists can travel in both directions) and an option for a cycle lane on Billesley Lane.
Although emergency vehicles have a key to remove the bollards, feedback from these services is that they prefer to navigate around the closures, with the quieter streets making it easier to do this than when lots of drivers were cutting through the side streets.
Finally, we know that residents of the more main roads are concerned about having more cars on their roads. We acknowledge that there will be some initial displacement of traffic as we prevent drivers from cutting through side roads. However, Places for People and other measures in the Birmingham Transport Plan are designed to drastically reduce travel by private car, shifting most local trips to walking and cycling and longer journeys to public transport. This large scale change in behaviour is needed to reduce congestion, but most importantly to reduce carbon emissions and air pollution and respond to the climate crisis.
What now?
Bringing together the results of our review, and the further local feedback received since then, we are now consulting on the next phase of Places for People in Kings Heath and Moseley. Through this, the scheme will be made permanent and new measures will be added, particularly to the east of Kings Heath High Street.
We are presenting four concept designs, meaning that the plans show where a measure might be placed, but do not include the detailed design of exactly how it would be arranged. There are two options for each side of the High Street (to the west - Option A and Option B and to the east - Option C and Option D). We would like to know which of each you prefer and what you like and dislike about them. This is not a consultation on whether the Places for People project should go ahead, it is about finding the best design for the next stage of the project.
A copy of the consultation leaflet, proposed designs and supporting notes, as well as details about online and public drop-in events, are available at the bottom of this page.
Next steps
Following this consultation, we will create a final, detailed design for both sides of Kings Heath High Street. That design will then be turned into an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO, the legal document needed to make changes on roads). The delivery of this scheme is likely to be in early 2022.
Events
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Teams live briefing session
From 5 Oct 2021 at 18:00 to 5 Oct 2021 at 19:30We will give a presentation on the Kings Heath Places for People and give you an opportunity to ask the team any questions you have.
Register for the event at: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/kings-heath-moseley-places-for-people-teams-live-event-tickets-181032381727 -
Business briefing
From 6 Oct 2021 at 15:00 to 6 Oct 2021 at 16:30A briefing for businesses to find out more about the scheme and ask any questions.
Register for the event at: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/kings-heath-moseley-places-for-people-business-briefing-tickets-181592938367 -
Drop in session - York Road
From 12 Oct 2021 at 15:30 to 12 Oct 2021 at 18:30Come along to chat with members of the team, ask questions and give us your feedback. No need to book, just turn up at any time.
Location: York Road.
This event may be cancelled should COVID-19 restrictions change. This will be an outdoor event, and we ask attendees to be considerate of others and consider wearing a mask if talking to staff for a long time. -
Drop in session - Kings Heath Community Centre
From 19 Oct 2021 at 11:00 to 19 Oct 2021 at 14:00Come along to chat with members of the team, ask questions and give us your feedback. No need to book, just turn up at any time.
Location: Kings Heath Community Centre, 8 Heathfield Rd, King's Heath, Birmingham B14 7DB
This event may be cancelled should COVID-19 restrictions change. This will be an indoor event, and we ask attendees to be considerate of others and consider wearing a mask if talking to staff for a long time. -
Drop in session - Kings Heath Community Centre
From 26 Oct 2021 at 15:30 to 26 Oct 2021 at 18:30Come along to chat with members of the team, ask questions and give us your feedback. No need to book, just turn up at any time.
Location: Kings Heath Community Centre, 8 Heathfield Rd, King's Heath, Birmingham B14 7DB
This event may be cancelled should COVID-19 restrictions change. This will be an indoor event, and we ask attendees to be considerate of others and consider wearing a mask if talking to staff for a long time. -
Drop in session - Cambridge Road Methodist Church
From 30 Oct 2021 at 10:00 to 30 Oct 2021 at 13:00Come along to chat with members of the team, ask questions and give us your feedback. No need to book, just turn up at any time.
Location: Cambridge Road Methodist Church, Cambridge Rd, Moseley, Birmingham B13 9UE
This event may be cancelled should COVID-19 restrictions change. This will be an indoor event, and we ask attendees to be considerate of others and consider wearing a mask if talking to staff for a long time. -
Business briefing - Kings Heath Community Centre
From 1 Nov 2021 at 16:00 to 1 Nov 2021 at 18:00This is a drop-in event for businesses only. Residents should attend the other drop-in sessions detailed on this page.
Come along to chat with members of the team, ask questions and give us your feedback. No need to book, just turn up at any time.
Areas
- Brandwood & King's Heath
- Moseley
- MOSELEY AND KINGS HEATH
Audiences
- Anyone from any background
Interests
- cycling
- Health & Wellbeing
- Environment
- Planning
- Regeneration
- Transport (Including Walking)
- City Centre Parking
- Travel
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