SPEEDWATCH RESULTS - WILMSLOW ROAD

Yesterday I joined a group of local volunteers and residents to support another Community Speedwatch session. At the request of several residents and following an issue recently raised by Alderley Edge School for Girls, we positioned ourselves closer to the centre of the village (on the island opposite Piccolino's). I am pleased to say that in half an hour, we did not record a single vehicle exceeding the 30mph speed limit. After the first half an hour, we therefore decided to move to Ryleys Lane and positioned ourselves at the junction with Redesmere Drive. At this location, which is a School Safety Zone, we recorded eight vehicles in the remaining half an hour, of which:

6 vehicles were travelling in excess of 30 mph (highest speed was 37 mph); and
2 vehicles were travelling in excess of 40 mph (highest speed was 47 mph).

Our next session will be on Thursday 3rd May at 2pm. If anyone would like to join the team of volunteers, please leave your details in the comment box below, or send me an email (craig.browne@cheshireeast.gov.uk).

COMMUNITY SURGERY - FRIDAY 27TH APRIL

I am pleased to confirm the date of my next Community Surgery, which will be Friday 27th April, from 10.00-11.00am. Once again, the venue this month will be Alderley Edge Library, so please drop in and join me for a tea/coffee and a chat about any local issues that may be causing you concern.

NEW PLANTER ON LONDON ROAD

I am pleased to confirm that the Parish Council has agreed to purchase an additional planter for London Road. Following our fundraising appeal last year, we promised to display a plaque in the village, acknowledging the support of everyone who had contributed. We have now done this and a plaque displaying the names of the supporters has been installed on the wall outside Alderley Edge Library. As the plaque has cost less than we had anticipated, we have some funds left over, which have now been used to purchase an extra planter. The new planter will be positioned outside the Oxfam shop on London Road and should be in place within the next few weeks.

CCTV INCIDENTS REPORT Q4 2017

Following recent questions from residents and Parish Councillors, I am pleased to share an Incident Report provided by the CCTV control room at Macclesfield Town Hall. During the final quarter of 2017, there were 33 incidents picked up by the CCTV system in Alderley Edge. For nine of these incidents, footage was passed on to the police for further action. In spite of a couple of recent glitches, I hope these figures will help provide some reassurance to residents, that the CCTV system is functioning effectively.

REVISED LIBRARY OPENING HOURS

Following a recent consultation, Cheshire East Council are now publishing revised opening times for Alderley Edge Library. Following a statutory notice period for staff and consultation with the relevant trade unions, the following opening times will be effective from 1st July. In addition to these times, I am looking to operate a volunteer-led session, which will enable the library to be open on either a Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon/evening. I will shortly be contacting all the residents who have already come forward and offered to volunteer; however, if anyone else would like to join the group of volunteers, please drop me an email (craig.browne@cheshireeast.gov.uk).

REVISED OPENING TIMES:
Monday: closed
Tuesday: 09.30-13.30
Wednesday: 09.30-13.30
Thursday:14.30-19.00
Friday: 13.00-17.00
Saturday: 09.30-13.00

APPEAL DECISION: LAND BEHIND 14-18 LONDON ROAD

I am disappointed to report that an appeal by the applicant to redevelop this site with one ground floor office and two upstairs apartments, has been upheld by the appeal inspectorate. The application was originally recommended for approval by the Planning Officer at Cheshire East Council, but overturned by members after I called the application to Northern Planning Committee. I remain of the view that, whilst the site does need to be developed, the relationship with neighbouring properties makes this location unsuitable for living accommodation.

LITTER BIN - SOUTH ST CAR PARK

I am pleased to confirm that we will be getting a new litter bin in the corner of South Street Car Park. Following recent requests from the Parish Council and the Alderley Edge in Bloom group, who have highlighted the area as a growing problem with litter, I have arranged with ANSA (Cheshire East Waste Management) for the bin that was recently removed from The Parade to accommodate the new noticeboard, to be replaced in South Street Car Park (in the corner of the site, where the public toilet used to be).

SPEEDWATCH RESULTS - CONGLETON ROAD

On Thursday 5th April, I joined local volunteers from the Community Speedwatch team. On this occasion we timed our session between 11am - 12noon at the junction of Congleton Road and Whitebarn Road. This was a particularly busy session and in total we recorded 37 vehicles exceeding the speed threshold (the speed limit in this location is 30mph), which equates to one speeding vehicle every 97 seconds! The results were:

- speeding but below 39 mph (22 vehicles)
- speeding between 40-49 mph (13 vehicles)
- speeding at 50 mph or higher (2 vehicles)
- average speed of all recorded vehicles (39.57 mph)
- including 3 Toyotas, 3 Audis & 1 BMW

Our next session will be held on Thursday 19th April at 11am, when our new PCSO (Anna Jenkinson) will be joining us. If any members of the local community are available or would like to join the team and help out on another occasion, please do let me know. At our Parish Council meeting on Monday evening, we will be considering a resolution to purchase a second speed radar gun, which will enable us to cover more sessions in future.