Tuesday 4th April, 2023
The Local Plan Committee met on Monday evening to discuss the Colchester City Centre Masterplan. The Committee unanimously voted to put the plan out for public consultation.
LibDem Councillor Martin Goss, and Chair of the Committee, addressed concerns of residents that they may be charged for congestion, stating that this is not true.
He also denied rumours that the Council planned to enforce a 15-minute city, which would prevent residents from leaving their homes.
Councillor Goss further emphasised the need to improve the High Street, which he called a shambles, and denied that any trees would be cut down in the Avenue of Remembrance:
“Residents have asked if we’re putting in a congestion charge as they read this in The Gazette. WE ARE NOT bringing in any congestion charges.
We’ve had people asking if we’re going to become a 15 minute city. There’s been a lot of conflation around this in the press. Just to be clear: we aren’t going to lock people in their homes. I’ve never had to deal with so much nonsense on social media. ALL NONSENSE.”
Jean Quinn, representing the Colchester Cycling Campaign, congratulated the Council for their leadership and support of the plan. She praised the Council for taking radical action to reduce air pollution, but suggested improvements such as implementing a contraflow system for cyclists on the High Street:
“Colchester’s air pollution is a cause for concern. The main way to reduce air pollution is to reduce motor traffic. We’re delighted to support this plan. We’re thrilled with the radical action for the city centre. It will make this a better place.
However, you can be even better. On East Hill there will be a cycle path. You then have to go around Queen Street. There isn’t a contraflow system on the High Street for cyclists. We’d like you to consider this.
Queen Street is a dog’s dinner. You can go down there and there will be vehicles on yellow lines. There needs to be a contraflow for cyclists. Thanks for your leadership. Have the courage.”
High Sheriff Bob Russell criticised the masterplan, claiming that it is incomplete and will have a serious impact on the Council’s finances. He accused the Council of promoting cycling at the expense of motorists and of not welcoming visitors to Colchester. He also criticised the proposal to close the Bingo Hall, which he called “Colchester’s most popular venue.”
“The so called masterplan is a fraud. It is woefully incomplete. There should be no decision until there is an economic statement. The closure of car parks will run into hundreds of thousands of pounds.
How much has the masterplan cost to produce? It is an attack on the two thirds of people that come into Colchester. They are reading that they are not welcome. The Council should be saying: come here. We have car parks. The message is that they should drive to Ipswich or Chelmsford.
The emphasis is all about promoting cycling. Driving motorists out of the city centre will have a serious impact on the Council’s finances. The closure of the Bingo Hall is proposed – Colchester’s most popular venue. They will make congestion worse. It is madness. This so called masterplan is not fit for purpose.”
A Council Officer defended the masterplan, stating that it was carefully considered and balanced, and that it promotes transport choice, not an attack on car users. He pointed out that Southway is a major barrier, and that the plan seeks to recover from the ill-advised plans of the 1960s.
Councillor Goss added:
“I wouldn’t believe what you read in the press. They want clickbait for their website. I’ve has this conversation with The Gazette. We’re dealing with facts.”
Sir Bob Russell wasn’t convinced:
“Nothing I have read out is inaccurate. 5% of people come in by bike. This is an attack on the viability of the city centre. Even Councillors aren’t doing what they want other people to do. This should be binned.”
Labour Group Leader Councillor Chris Pearson supported the plan and its positive proposals, such as safer pedestrian access, improvements to Roman history, and contraflows for cyclists.
He also noted that transportation evolves and that the car cannot be king forever. Councillor Pearson suggested that improvements to Southway and St Botolphs’s were possible and that the plan would benefit the city centre:
“I don’t share Sir Bob’s concerns. There are lots of positive proposals. This includes a safer High Street for pedestrians.
We should also look at contraflows for cyclists. I went to Denmark and I was impressed with cycle routes through the city centres. It’s a vast improvement. Cyclists are welcome.
People weren’t using cars 100 years ago in Colchester. They were walking or cycling. Transportation evolves. If we are going to improve the environment then the car cannot be king for much longer. We can re-engineer Southway and St Botolphs’s.”
Colchester Business Improvement District Manager Sam Good criticised the masterplan for not giving preference to retail and what he described as “blocking private cars.” He stated that such interventions would result in increased empty properties and that the plan did not do enough to encourage alternatives to private cars:
“The opportunity should be to increase, rather than remove car parks. Over 50% of workers use their private car. This masterplan won’t fix the alternatives by blocking the private car. By blocking the private car you will push shoppers to other cities.
The BID would like to see a detailed plan that has the business interest first. There are statements in the plan that we find alarming.”
Contributions also came from local residents.
Nick Chilvers told the Committee:
“The masterplan doesn’t show much understanding of the wider city or of human nature. Nine out of ten people aspire to own their own car. Dear, oh dear. Colchester isn’t Shoreditch. There’s a lot more painters and decorators.
If you build flats you will have residents with low aspirations and all the problems that involves. The report doesn’t help with levelling up. You will create more division between the haves and the have nots.”
Dorian Kelly was more supportive:
“I congratulate the City Council for identifying this masterplan as a way to stop unwelcome developers. It is pretty much spot on with its major recommendations. New developments shouldn’t fail to attract visitors. New buildings need to be exceptional and include public art. There should be no gated areas.”
Other Councillors were then invited to address the Committee. Green Councillor Mark Goacher said:
“I’m very pleased to see the commitment to enhancing our heritage. I’m also pleased to see access to St Botolphs’s Priory. I share some concerns raised by the BID.
I cannot understand why Colchester is so different when it comes to buses. The report recognises that the bus station is not very good. It’s really unpleasant to use at night. I do like the idea of the shuttle bus.
I don’t drive a car. We don’t want to encourage more car use. We need to think about how we are going to improve public transport and be more forceful with bus travel. Why can’t we go for a carbon neutral bus station?”
An Officer responded by saying that Colchester doesn’t have a bus station because the city is so constrained for space.
Councillor Goss added that the current bus terminus is “not fir for purpose” – which is strange, seeing as though he was a Member of the Council that voted it through a decade ago.
LibDem Council Leader Dave King made a rare intervention at the Local Plan Committee:
“I want to ask you to push this through to the next stage. It’s right that we address the stories that are out there. This isn’t an attack on the car. It’s not an attack on business. It’s not an attack on the Council’s budget. We’ve got to make some fundamental changes. This is not more of the same. This is about connectivity and regeneration. It’s about rebalancing.”
Labour Councillor Adam Fox was also looking forwards, not backwards:
“Nothing ever stays the same. This masterplan starts with putting Colchester’s assets front and centre. We improve the lives of residents. Tourism is important. It’s about attracting people. When students graduate from the University they want to stay here as it’s a vibrant place.
It’s not about blocking cars. It’s about rethinking the spaces we have. If you arrive by bus, scooter or skateboard – Colchester is a welcoming place. For people who want a better bus station, we need to build a better bus network. You need to think about how those routes terminate. The bus routes are fifty years old.”
Labour Cllr Lee Scordis was critical of Sir Bob Russell:
“I find it very unbecoming that the former MP has to be rude to staff. This conversation has become too focussed on cars. The normal car parks will still be there. There is no issue for people getting into this town.
I understand the BID concern, but people spend money, not cars. The city centre has not changed in my whole life. Head Street is still polluted and doesn’t look very nice. We are living in the past.
Queen Street has always been known as a dirty street, It’s quite amazing how we have survived. This is about adapt or die. The buses are not in our remit. They are a law unto themselves. We should work with the BID and ECC to get the buses working for Colchester.”
Cross party support came from Tory Leader Councillor Darius Laws:
“There is anxiety about this being anti-car and pro-cycling. The bus system needs looking at. There was concerns about hills. Electrification of bicycles is now here. We haven’t got the safe infrastructure in place for people to cycle. This is what this is all about.”
LibDem Councillor Michelle Burrows also addressed the bus situation:
“It’s only a choice if it’s affordable. These can be expensive if you want to be environmentally friendly. In the consultation we need feedback from residents on why they don’t use buses.”
Councillor Martin added:
“The bus companies told us our car parks are too cheap and we need to ramp up the prices. Ipswich gets it right. It’s four people for a fiver. That’s what Essex needs to do.”
LibDem Councillor Paul Smith offered his thoughts
“It is key that we have a cheap bus service. This is an opportunity to try and get something out of our dysfunctional bus services.
We haven’t give enough attention to low paid jobs. Colchester has more than any other comparable towns or cities. We need to encourage higher paid jobs into the city centre.
On affordable housing, there is reference to increasing this in the city centre. We need more accommodation in the city centre. We can turn round run down areas.”
More cross party support came from Tory Councillor Andrew Ellis:
“I’m disappointed that some speakers have missed the point. If you want to get Colchester to survive and thrive, you need to get people living in Colchester. This is not anti-car. It’s all about choice. At the moment people have no choice but to use the car.
This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. A lot of County bashing goes on. We’re working cross-party and cross-authority. The County is putting in substantial investment. This is an exciting opportunity for Colchester. This won’t happen overnight. It will only happen if we start the process.”
The Committee voted unanimously to put the City Centre Masterplan out to public consultation. This is expected to take place later this year in May.
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