Pavement Parking in Brill

The problem

More cars, bigger cars, 2-3 car households the norm - all squeezed into a village built on a medieval footprint. Add genuine concerns about the passage of fire engines (and, regrettably, the occasional large lorry) and it’s no wonder that many residents are forced to park with two wheels on the pavement.

We have to say that on the whole in Brill, pavement parking is executed with consideration; motorists avoid junctions and abusing narrow pavements - but here’s what could happen if things get out of hand:

• children (and others) unable to see to cross safely

• wheelchair users trapped; no way forward, no room to turn, dropped kerbs blocked

• buggy pushers forced out into passing traffic

• damage to kerbs and pavement causing subsequent expense, trips and injury

Can we stop it?

Not by legal means - at least not routinely in England outside of London (where pavement parking is an offence subject to hefty fines).

The Highway Code (Rule 244) states that motorists “should not [park on pavements] unless signs permit it”; advice rather than command. However, Rule 242 says: "You must not leave your vehicle or trailer in a dangerous position or where it causes any unnecessary obstruction of the road". Given that pavements are considered part of the highway/road, this means that if your pavement parked car is judged by a police officer to be either in a dangerous position or causing an unnecessary obstruction you could receive a fixed penalty notice.

Sledgehammers and nuts come to mind.

So, what to do?

All we can realistically do is appeal to residents to continue to park carefully - and to ask yourself these questions before locking up and walking away:

1. Is there any chance at all I could park on my property? If I’m a weekend visitor, could I use the windmill car park?

2. Am I blocking sight lines for pedestrians at a busy crossing place? Am I making it difficult for motorists to leave their properties by crowding their access?

3. Have I left enough pavement for two wheelchairs or buggies to pass (minimum 1.5 metres) - or is there sufficient space within 5-6 metres where they could safely manoeuvre?

THANK YOU!

EV Charging Points in Brill

Two electric vehicle charge points will be installed in the car park behind Brill Memorial Hall during the summer. This is part of a wider Buckinghamshire Council project. Just two spaces will be reserved initially for electric cars but, since each point can charge two cars, two more spaces could be reserved in the future when electric vehicles become more common. 

We all know that the Memorial Hall car park is badly in need of repair. The current Parish Council has set aside some funding to support the renovation but nothing can be done at the moment as the surveyors have not yet decided where to run the cables. 

A beautiful village - but not designed for cars!

Brill is a beautiful village, but it was not designed for cars. There is limited parking and a few inconsiderate people cause problems for others, at the Windmill Street – High Street junction in particular.

The Parish Council is looking at how to improve the situation. The first step is encouraging more people to use the car park behind the Memorial Hall. The car park is not obvious to visitors, so we are improving the signs, testing them one-by-one to make sure that they do not impact users of the Memorial Hall badly. The plan is to install a sign on the lamppost opposite the hall so there are directions to the car park from Thame Road – this should happen early next year. We are also applying to replace the temporary traffic cones outside the Memorial Hall with bollards.

There is no easy solution to the Windmill Street – High Street junction, a popular place for pulling in as it is near both the village shops. If everyone followed the Highway Code, it would not be a problem as the junction would be kept clear, but sadly that does not happen and there is a risk of accidents as cars block the view along the High Street.

Options include painting double-yellow lines on the road or adding bollards, but neither option is straightforward; we must comply with highways regulations and there must be formal consultations. The Parish Council is in discussion with Buckinghamshire Council to find a solution but it is a lengthy process and it will take many months. In the meantime, please don’t park at the Windmill Street – High Street junction.

Cllr Steven Judge

Village traffic concerns; no quick fix

The safety of residents and visitors is of paramount important for the Parish Council, but there is no quick fix when it comes to addressing traffic issues. Here are a few reasons why.

First, the cost - five figures for a simple speed bump - we must have strong evidence to show that any changes will be value for money. Second, we must negotiate the complex web of rules and regulations to make sure any changes are safe; even relocating a road sign needs careful thought. Third, Buckinghamshire Council is not funding new 20 mph zones but perhaps this policy will change in the future. Fourth, there have to be formal consultation exercises for some changes. Last but not least, we must respect the environment of our beautiful village.

Given these constraints, where do we start? The first thing the Parish Council needs is evidence - and this is partially why we’ve chosen to take part in an initiative co-funded by the Haddenham & Waddesden Community Board (a network of local councils) to bid for two new Speed Indicator Devices (SIDs). These devices will be rotated between posts installed on our access roads, the siting of which is, needless to say, subject to certain regulations, such as having to be inside the 30 mph zone. Luckily, we have a Bucks Council Highways expert to guide us through the intricacies.

If the Community Board initiative is successful, we should have the SIDs up and running before the end of the year. As well as reminding motorists to stay within the speed limit, they will log the speed of vehicles entering the village so we can build up a database of evidence to use to support future bids for funding for additional traffic calming measures. This information will supplement the data collected by the SID operated by our parish council predecessors until late 2020.

In the meantime, we have to replace the village sign on Tramhill because this has been vandalised (the police were informed). Buckinghamshire HIghways will supply a new sign but we need to choose the design. Do we go for plain and simple - or informative and colourful? We’ll be asking your opinion throughout September, on Facebook, in our e-newsletter and face-to-face at the Community Market. It’s not a safety issue but it is a great way of marking out Brill as a special place.

Community Speedwatch. Do we dare?

Busybody neighbours, power-hungry councillors, the mocking sub-plot of a dozen episodes of The Archers and Midsomer Murders; you could say Community Speedwatch has a bit of an image problem. Is this what we want for Brill?

Community Speedwatch is a national initiative where proactive members of local communities join with the support and supervision of their local police to record details of speeding vehicles using approved detection devices. The impact of speeding cars through villages like Brill is not limited to fatalities and life-changing injuries (we have been lucky so far); it has a direct effect on quality of life as residents feel increasingly unsafe on their local roads and streets. We know this from our recent traffic management poll respondents to which voiced a sense of living with imminent disaster:

“I really do believe that it is a matter of time before someone gets seriously inured.” “I have witnessed way too many close calls and fear that someone will get hurt or worse if something isn’t done.”

Speedwatches believes that “intelligent, personalised education” of drivers is the answer to today’s speeding epidemic. Registered keepers of vehicles exceeding the speed limit are contacted, initially with a letter explaining the potential risks and consequences of their dangerous behaviour. Repeat offenders will receive a visit from the local police, irrespective of where they live. Focused enforcement and criminal prosecution may follow, based on the collated evidence. In summary: Community Speedwatch activity is “not about interfering with neighbours' behaviour; it is a proactive solution to improve the safety and quality of life for everyone in the community”.

But, at a time when Parish Council vacancies remain unfilled for over a year and The Brill Society struggles to find volunteers to open Brill Windmill to the public once a week, is there really the capacity and enthusiasm to make up a functioning Speedwatch team? How much easier it seems to spend tens of thousands imposing a 20mph limit and leave it to an illusionary Police presence to enforce!

Traffic management is one of Brill Parish Council’s more pressing issues. The dual problems of speeding cars and inconsiderate parking have been lurking in the shadows for many years now with various councils down the decades trying to find aesthetically-acceptable and cost-effective solutions. We believe the time has come to examine the evidence and make bold decisions which will really make a difference.

Parking on Sun Corner. Is it possible...?

Dare we say it? Has parking around Sun Corner got significantly better since we conducted our traffic management poll in January? Is it possible that simply pointing out a problem - making public so many passionate opinions, sharing stories of pedestrian near-misses and emergency vehicle delays - has changed behaviour, at least for a while? Or is this just wistful thinking - or a post-pandemic holiday exodus?

It’s therefore just as well that the Parish Council can’t do much about Sun Corner for a while. Fired by the consensus to Do Something! we did briefly consider costing double yellow lines and looking into conservation area yellow lines but then caution prevailed, in the form of the Haddenham & Waddesdon Community Board. Elaine Hassell, the CB co-ordinator, told us that there is a county-wide Parking Team tasked with reviewing village parking concerns and reporting back to CBs, who would then be able to give informed technical and financial support. So… watch this space.

In the meantime, let’s build on the awareness raised by the poll.

If you’re lucky enough to have a garage or off-street parking space, please take a long hard look at why you’re not using them. Could you clear garage clutter or rearrange your front garden? Taking just a dozen cars off the main village streets would have a significant knock-on effect on congestion on Sun Corner. (Important point: several householders told us that they often can’t access their narrow driveways - because of cars parking too tightly, so please keep this in mind.)

The bottom line (sorry!) is that according to Highway Code, drivers should NOT park within 10 metres (32 feet) of a junction. This means that, with or without double yellow lines, cars parked on Sun Junction do so illegally and could be challenged by the Police. Similarly, parking with two wheels on the pavement is also expressly forbidden, whatever the circumstances. Even if you are “just popping into Brill Stores”, a child in a pushchair, or a wheelchair or mobility scooter user could be forced down into the road, with disastrous consequences.

Let’s see what we can achieve, pending that Parking Team review!

Speeding. The solution is in our hands

Did you know that 99% of all speeding cars in villages like Brill are driven by LOCAL PEOPLE?!

Commuters rushing to catch trains, parents dropping off children, residents driving familiar roads to work, shops, cinema, gym, friends. Running late, tired, distracted, dreaming, carefree, careless, angry, on auto-pilot; who knows? But, hand on heart, has this never been YOU?

Have you never waited until you’re past the 30pmh signs before slowing down, so you’re still doing 35mph into the Square? Have you never spied an empty road ahead going out of the village and got a move on so you’re doing 40mph by the time you get to the doctors? No? Well, you’re a better person than the author of this blog.

There’s lots of scary facts and figures out there about speeding cars and pedestrians*. Try to remember just this one:

A pedestrian who is hit by a car travelling at between 30 mph and 40 mph is over FOUR TIMES more likely to die than if hit by a car travelling at below 30 mph.

Right! So this stops NOW! If every reader of this blog - and every person that readers of this blog passes this one to - PLEDGES never to exceed the speed limit in Brill or in any other village (even Longwich and Long Crendon) - then we would halve speeding in a week.

Here’s something else to think about:

Half of all pedestrian fatalities occur at impact speeds of 30 mph or below - and elderly pedestrians have a much greater risk of suffering fatal injuries than any other age group.

So, next week, let’s try going 20mph and see how that feels. As that booming voice says at the start of the feature film in Vue Cinemas: “Feels good, doesn’t it?”

*Take a look at the Royal Society for Prevention of Accidents’ factsheet on speeding or the briefing papers on the 20’s Plenty website