Purpose A120 s Forum second meeting Project A120 Braintree to A12 Feasibility Study Date/Time 22 April 2016 Location Committee Room 2, County Hall, Market Road Chelmsford CM1 1QH Prepared by Whitney Adam Attendees See Attachment 1 Agenda Notes 1 Welcome N/A Cllr Bass welcomed the group 2 Project update N/A Chris Stevenson provided an overview of the progress to date and what Essex County Council (ECC) are aiming for. There has been progress over past few months on technical work, gathered traffic and environmental information: - 70 potential routes been sifted down to 10 - Challenge programme - By January 2017, want to take routes to consultation. Then, which routes to recommend It was highlighted that ECC need to go through Highways England processes. Ultimately this would be DCO scheme, so will go through this process. Cllr Bass suggested a full technical briefing at the next meeting would be useful so the region s elected representatives are aware of early findings. Cllr Bass also highlighted importance of interaction with the A12. Cllr Bass happy with progress to date. 3 Outcomes of community engagement forums: Report Lisa Levy reported to the group on the first round of forums, which it Agenda item to be added to Community Forums to communicate that A120 s Forum to be kept 1
Agenda Notes was felt went well. Key points were: Request for more information about traffic and safety. Minority of forum members had some knowledge of the previous consultation. Keen interest in the A12 proposals. Lisa Levy relayed Braintree Community Forum s request that the s forum was opened to the public. Cllr Bass wanted to keep A120 s Forum private. Otherwise it may undermine community forums which are the primary way to engage openly. Suffolk Chamber would like to be involved. Lisa Levy confirmed that Suffolk Chamber would be invited to the Economic Forum. Lisa Levy provided summary of topics for next Community Forums how options are sifted, how environmental impacts are assessed. It was noted that a key theme from all Community Forums was the request for more information on the A12. s agreed that information about the A12 needs to be communicated. Cllr Bass concerned about the environmental issues in more rural areas. s discussed importance of environmental constraints. private. Include Q&A session at the beginning of agenda at Community Forums. Jacobs to invite Suffolk Chamber of Commerce to next Economy Forum. 4 Communications forward plan Philippa Garden showed the website for A120. Optimised for smart phones and tablets. Structure of website simple and intended to demonstrate the project s transparent approach to information sharing. Articles have been added, and more to be added later in April 2016. The design aims to provide a flavour of what is happening on the A120, including: Interactive elements showing key environmental features;. Details of upcoming forums and meetings and notes and actions from previous sessions.. Email address is included to allow questions to be raised. The Forward plan will concentrate on gentle momentum and awareness of the study as we approach consultation. It will be focused around website updates. Philippa Garden asked the s for views as to what extent we engage with the media. Philippa Garden suggested a proactive media plan to the s. s agreed that the earlier we engage with the media the better. The social media model questioned. Current approach is that ECC profile will be used, as opposed to a specific A120 profile. This is to capture an even voice. Key words will be used to monitor social media. Build relationship / profile with reputable media channels (newspaper), for when we need to engage in the future 2
Agenda Notes Lisa Levy suggested that messages are put out to key media channels but noted that it is important not to go out too early with social media. Cllr Bass A120 s Forum members (individuals) can start expressing views soon. ECC need to hold back from expressing views. Cllr Finch suggested that individual members should be used to help messages be delivered. There was concern about not creating enemies with certain media channels by going exclusive with one newspaper. 5 Business Engagement update Philippa Garden highlighted that individual businesses need a voice. Verbal update from Haven Gateway Partnership. Want business voice to be heard clearly. 6 Any other business It was noted that Hutchinson Ports and Stansted Airport are important to build relationships with. Cllr Bass agreed that strategic conversation needs to be maintained. 6 Next meeting Future dates to be communicated before 10 June Friday 10 June at 9.30-11am Proposed items: the 10 options Drone views of the route Discuss issue of junctions railway, A12 Note: this meeting was subsequently rearranged for 8 July 2016 3
Attachment 1: Attendees and apologies Cllr R Bass Cllr K Bentley Cllr Anne Brown Hon James Cleverly M P Nigel Allsopp Andy Jobling Cllr B Frame Cllr Lady Newton Peter Smith Cllr J Finch Peter Grimm Mike Bonner Lisa Levy Andrew Cooke Chris Stevenson Philippa Garden Whitney Adam Daniel Barrett Essex CC Cabinet for Infrastructure ECR B Chairman Essex CC Deputy Leader and Cabinet for Economic Growth, Infrastructure, Waste and Recycling Cabinet for Corporate, Communities and Customers of Parliament for Braintree Highways England Area Team Leader for Suffolk, Norfolk and Essex Highways England Route Manager for Essex Colchester Council Cabinet for Economic Growth and Planning Braintree Council Cabinet for Planning and Housing Braintree Council Braintree Council Suffolk CC Cabinet for Highways and Transport Suffolk CC Strategic Traffic Manager A12 Villages Traffic Action Group Jacobs Director of Operations, Stakeholder Engagement Essex CC Director for Operations: Environment and Economy Essex CC Head of Commissioning Jacobs A120 Engagement Lead Jacobs note taker Jacobs observer Apologies Hon Bernard Jenkin MP Rt Hon Priti Patel MP of Parliament for Harwich and North Essex of Parliament for Witham 4
Hon Will Quince MP Hon Andrew Jones MP Cllr R Hirst Cllr Mick Page Cllr Kay Twitchen George Kieffer Roger Mannion Cllr J Finch of Parliament for Colchester of Parliament and Parliamentary Under Secretary for Transport Essex CC Cabinet for Transport, Planning and the Environment Deputy to the Cabinet for Planning and the Environment Currently in Leader s Portfolio Deputy to the Cabinet for Planning and the Environment Currently in Leader s Portfolio The Haven Gateway Partnership-Chairman Chair of A12 Villages Traffic Action Group Suffolk CC Cabinet for Highways and Transport 5