Technical Notes 2021, Issue 31 - Consultation Arrangements for the Active Travel Strategy
Section
- The purpose of this technical note is to notify Elected Members of the arrangements which are in place for early consultation to be held which will inform delivery of the second Active Travel Strategy
- A Technical Note and Delegated Decision Report (PNCA/025/21/AL) have previously been circulated outlining the work programme for a new Active Travel Strategy for East Dunbartonshire. The Report highlighted that a period of early engagement will be held which will involve extensive option generation with local communities and stakeholders. This option generation will contribute to ideas already suggested through previous consultations held on the Local Transport Strategy and other policy documents.
- This period of early engagement is being titled the Active Travel Discussion and therefore aims to be a positive discussion with local residents to identify new ideas and options which could be carried forward to a draft Active Travel Strategy. Delivery of projects in existing strategies will continue as planned.
Active Travel Discussion
4. The Active Travel Discussion begins on 11 May and will be open across the summer months, closing on 28 September. This provides significant opportunity for local communities to use existing networks and get involved in the discussion suggesting ways in which they could be improved or expanded. Levels of walking and cycling have increased significantly in East Dunbartonshire over the past year and this discussion aims to build on this momentum by encouraging as many people as possible to join the discussion.
Methods of Consultation
5. Due to ongoing restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the consultation will mainly use digital methods of engagement to gather ideas and comments:
- Ideas Map – This is the main engagement method and will allow local people to use an online tool to mark ideas and routes they would like to see on a map – visit the Active Travel and Green Space Ideas Map.
- Survey – Questions are embedded within the Ideas Map to gather views on the draft priorities for active travel and the Active Travel Option Assessment Process (Appendix 1)
- Online Community Discussions – A series of online discussion sessions have been organised for each community within the Local Transport Strategy 2020-2025. Elected Members are welcome to attend these sessions which will be hosted on Microsoft Teams. Registration details for each session are available on the Active Travel Discussion webpage and in the table below.
| Community | Thursday Session (2pm-3pm) | Tuesday Session (7pm-8pm) | Saturday Session (10am-11am) | Eventbrite Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bearsden and Milngavie | 20 May | 8 June | 21 August | Sign up for Active Travel Discussion - Bearsden and Milngavie |
| Bishopbriggs, Torrance, Balmore and Bardowie | 27 May | 1 June | 28 August | Sign up for Active Travel Discussion - Bishopbriggs, Torrance, Balmore and Bardowie |
| Kirkintilloch, Lenzie, Waterside and Twechar | 3 June | 25 May | 4 September | Sign up for Active Travel Discussion - Kirkintilloch, Lenzie, Waterside and Twechar |
| Lennoxtown, Milton of Campsie, Haughhead and Clachan of Campsie | 10 June | 18 May | 11 September | Sign up for Active Travel Discussion - Lennoxtown and Campsies |
- Schools – Arrangements have been made to consult directly with different groups including pupils, Parent Councils and teachers and staff.
- Contact with organisations and community groups – an extensive consultation list including national, regional and local stakeholders will be contacted directly to inform them of the period of consultation and invite submission of ideas and comments
- Social Media – Local communities can join the discussion on social media by using #WalkCycleWheelED
- Response forms – Response forms will be available from local libraries for people who can’t access online methods. Arrangements for accessing libraries are detailed on the consultation homepage.
- Contact the team – Local residents will be able to contact the Land Planning Policy team by phone or by post.
- Events – Due to uncertainties created by the pandemic officers are currently unable to plan for any events which involve physical interaction, however, this situation will be kept under review to determine if any events such as led walks or information stalls could be organised at some point within the consultation window.
Awareness raising
- A significant communications plan has been put in place to raise awareness of the Active Travel Discussion:
- Social Media – An Active Travel Discussion brand has been created by the Corporate Communications team, which will be used across Twitter, Facebook and YouTube throughout the summer.
- Poster Campaign – The Active Travel Discussion brand has also been used to create banners and posters which will be positioned across active travel networks throughout East Dunbartonshire
- Local press – A press release has been circulated to local newspapers highlighting the consultation.
- Promotional film series – As part of a joint working approach, officers in the Land Planning Policy and Regeneration and Town Centres teams have commissioned a film production company to produce six short promotional films of local walking and cycling routes and tourism attractions along the way. This initiative has been funded through the Smarter Choices Smarter Places fund. It is intended that this project will help raise awareness of the Active Travel Discussion and promote East Dunbartonshire as a visitor destination for walking and cycling trips, as well as promotion of the area’s tourism unique selling points.
- Website and information booklet – The Active Travel Discussion homepage includes all of the details of the consultation arrangements for local communities. Download the information booklet outlining the plans for the second Active Travel Strategy.
Elected Member involvement
- The aforementioned Technical Note and Delegated Decision Report were discussed at a recent meeting of the Transport Working Group. The Working Group discussed possible ways Elected Members could be involved in the option generation process and Active Travel Discussion. Elected Members will of course be welcome to join in the online community discussion sessions, use and view the Ideas Map and email suggestions directly to officers to be included in the long list of options. In addition to this, a workshop event will also be organised specifically for Elected Members to allow a further opportunity to raise suggestions and ideas at this early stage in the Active Travel Strategy process.
- Arrangements for this workshop event will be made in due course and communicated to Elected Members through email.
Active Travel Option Assessment Process
- All options received over the course of the next few months will be consistently appraised using the Active Travel Option Assessment Process. This process is attached to the Active Travel Discussion homepage and is included as an Appendix to this Technical Note.