This report is a transcription of notes taken during the meeting on flipcharts and in small groups. 

Agenda

  • Welcome and Introductions
  • Short presentations
    • Tony Norton
    • Adam Luscombe
    • Mike elms
  • Working session
  • End by 1pm

Objectives

  • Hear about what is needed to be achieved and some of the existing initiatives
  • Develop ideas and recommend Actions for the Action plan

A series of short presentations were followed by questions between each presentation. The presentations are appended to the end of this report. The following is a transcription of the notes made during the question and discussion that followed presentations from Tony Norton, Adam Luscombe and Mike elms.  

  • 2030-2050 – the gap seems like an impossible gap to bridge. Local action can influence a number of areas within mobility
  • Leading by example (LA) what are they doing?
  • National Government Policy – carrot or stick?. In the past there have been some ‘stick’ policies e.g. banning fossil fuel cars. 
  • Consider marine transport, the cruise liners, pleasure craft etc.
  • Scottish govement are talking about 30% reduction in vehicle miles
  • Active travel, walking , cycling. Torbay is hilly, need to tackle active travel, this is starting to happen with the cost of fuel.
  • Cycling plan agreed last year? Nothing has happened (or very little) not moving because of delivery of plans
  • Data: really useful to help tell the story, Tony’s data is two years old, what is the approach to keep data up to date in accessible form, graphs etc.
  • Data from government take ages to get. Jacqui and Adams team are looking at creating local annual targets. Beware of death by data.
  • 5 million jouneys under a mile. What can we do this for Torbay pinch points?  Hills are a barrier
  • Exeter city had data map showing where staff jouneys were. They looked at data maps to help lobby for more busses
  • Exeter put black box in bikes, this is yielding really interesting information on how hire bikes are used.
  • The message that it is “dangerous to cycle” needs to be overcome
  • Charging points in car parks, are there any incentive for hotels, cafes etc? There are some incentives, Planning requirements for new building to have them but it is largely down to market forces.
  • Noise and tranquillity is really important part of shift in travel

Feedback from working session.   Below are the notes made by the facilitator during plenary discussion, including what is important and needs accelerating, some examples of successful projects and recommendations.   

  • Need to get going and get something done. Crack on
  • Public engagement, comms and language used is really important. EG don’t talk about car clubs but car sharing
  • Movement rather than active transport – be coherent and consistent in communications
  • Torbay should be regarded as a green place to live in and visit
  • Walking and cycling is about supporting local commuters. Opportunities for business nudging towards behaviour change.  Electric bikes, leading by example.
  • Helping employers and schools develop and implement travel plans and maintaining it.
  • Integration of travel eg, travel passes for all forms of travel in the Bay. Making it easy to use different forms of public transport.
  • Act on results of the consultation – “You said, We did”. Political coverage – some decisions will be tough
  • Safety really is important in terms of safety and behaviour change. Not about barriers its about sharing space – language again.
  • Sticks and carrots
  • Saving money – this is part of the cost of living discussion
  • Vancouver – zonal pass that can be used for all forms of transport.
  • London zonal tariffs
  • Exeter car share – how about providing a free wash at a park and ride.
  • Free parking for car sharers
  • Push bikes left in Torbay being reused and repaired
  • Costs of international travel need to increase, Planes and cars – Carbon Tax
  • Greenways (the visitor attraction) is an example of good shared travel 40% arrive by boat, walk or cycle. Section 106 requirements makes you come up with alternatives.
  • Green scrappage schemes, to support things like e-bikes
  • Data Prospect Brixham local project to build a data Trust using data as an evidence base and supporting data literacy. Mapping behaviour across areas.
  • Neighbourhood approach working with all interests to understand barrier and then start to break down barriers eg walking to school with your children and being allowed to start work a little later so you don’t have to drive to school then onto work. This could be piloted in one neighbourhood.
  • Education in schools and wider community and programmes to trial things. Messaging for schools and drivers, Bikability,  addressing hostility to cyclists.
  • Large employers – reaching out to influencers (local NHS)
  • Communications getting the story right – social media need specialists, case studies and personalisation. Keepoing information up to date
  • Engaging business to people selling / repairing bikes to message to their customers
  • Tailoring of the messaging
  • Carbon neutral / cost of living and wellbeing.
  • Not waiting for pots of money to turn up
  • Funding examples of sponsorship, local taxes, well being as well  
  • Being able to access the other parts of Devon without cars
  • Perception problem – Hills and safety are not that bad
  • Water not as barrier – Electric boat charging in Plymouth, has to be affordable - £1 or free or as part of the Torbay travel pass.
  • Pedestrianisation of the whole harbour area, not just part of it. Conversation on use of planters  which make the pedestrian space too narrow.
  • Fin a way of hearing people who don’t object. Often it depends on how you ask the question.  Planning for real type processes help people to consider options and understand the thinking behind plans.  Using planners as part of the process.
  • E-Bike trial, key areas, eg Exeter has good scheme, Cargo bike trials – eg Hackney in Est London

The notes below were taken down by the working groups at tables

What is important and how do we accelerate change.  Who should be helping to deliver?

  • Safety – important
  • Connected safe travel routs (mikes map) include a comms / campaign that helps people to use and access this.
  • Political courage – sense of urgency, connect to the vision
  • Use data, share change that is happening
  • Cost of living crisis / People’s lives (LSEG) what’s important to people?
  • Linking to health and wellbeing
  • Schools / workplaces
  • - public / private sector / community groups everyone being connected.
  • Place-based working
  • Deliver key priorities: do something now
  • Resource and money needed
  • Engage with local community, especially children
  • Make life difference for car owners
  • Legislation is crucial
  • Torbay needs to promote itself as a green place
  • Cater better for travelling tourists – park and ride etc.
  • Language and phraseology – movement rather than sport or activity – people use bikes not cyclists
  • Communication – make sure we reach all audiences, social media doesn’t reach everyone, Explain benefits of not taking the car
  • Integrated system – bus onto bike onto train onto taxi
  • Route safety – make it safe to walk/cycle
  • Having all options available so its easy to understand the sustainable options
  • Make water more useable, water taxi/ferry
  • Low traffic neighbourhoods
  • Options must be more affordable than to jump into a car
  • Increase cost of parking in centres, reduce outside park /ride costs
  • Survey / mapping / data collation of routes people commonly take
  • Encourage businesses / employers for facilities for change rooms / showers for cyclists.
  • Helping large employers / schools to implement healthy travel plan
  • Safety for walking and cycling
  • Got to make public transport better in terms of convenience and cost
  • Remind schools to limit drivers
  • Bikability – government
  • Easier funding streams and routes, to ringfence car parking funding
  • Issue – marine emissions

Come up with examples of good projects people know of (in and out of Torbay).  Who is delivering these?

  • Greenway – 40% visitors come without their car, ferry, train walk/cycle
  • Incentives for park and ride – e.g. green carwash
  • Walking trains – Denmark
  • Consider other places – Plymouth / Birmingham and other places
  • Electric scooters and Bikes App – Lanzarote, Bristol, Southampton
  • London - £1.50 bus to all areas
  • Carshare/bike share – Exeter
  • Holland/Amsterdam
  • Buddy scheme to show where / how people could cycle to places
  • Area pass – all transport (taxi/e-bike/bus. Rail etc)
  • Lift share platforms
  • Data analysis – travel survey habits for change.
  • School buses (America) front door to bus
  • Leeds – data mill showing live data about what is going on, help to solve problems and show progress
  • Prospect Brixham – focus people in the place having ownership of their own data.
  • Electric bikes / e.g. CoBikes
  • Green scrappage
  • Coherent comms between many organisations
  • Bike shops have good insights from their customers – church groups, community groups, have insight on active travel
  • China – cost of rial travel is very reasonable.

Recommendations for the Carbon neutral action plan

  • Park and stride / Ride
  • Bus improvements – hydrogen
  • Rail improvements – train to Churston
  • Brixham Railway – re-open for active travel
  • Renewable fuel local transport
  • Education around schools – Couch to 5 hills
  • Resources
  • Walking snakes
  • More pedestrian areas
  • Bike swap / exchange
  • Extending bikeability
  • Road safety – education to / for all
  • Car and bike clubs – pilots
  • Funding from car parking or tax opportunities
  • Incremental change (rather than grand design)
  • Funding to get things done
  • Communication – tell the story, why this is important
  • Bike share scheme
  • Fully pedestrianize Torquay harbour
  • Community engagement – schools and businesses
  • Explore better use of water.
  • Share data and progress with community, build data trust – use Brixham data trust example
  • Community challenge to support active travel
  • E-bike trial
  • Communication tailored to different audiences
  • Connected communication – encouraging cycling/walking whilst also flagging cheap parking.
  • Engaging local businesses and communities e.g. local bike shop and new cycle paths
  • Support for infrastructure – e.g. cycling shops /where to park
  • Learn from other areas re electric roll out
  • Create liveable communities.

Attendees

Name

  • Claire Beney
  • Louise Evans,
  • Gary Calland,
  • Adam Davidson
  • Lorna Sheriff
  • Tony Vincent
  • Mike Elms
  • Joanne Brimblecombe,
  • Catherine Williams,
  • Adam Luscombe
  • Nick Walter
  • Jennifer Walter
  • Amy O'Dwyer
  • John Vessey
  • Damian Offer
  • Greg Fine
  • Robert Newman
  • Lucy Elsdon
  • Natasha Nicklson
  • Pamela Charlick

Organisation

Active Devon
Active Devon
National Trust
South Devon ANOB
SW Coast Path
Stage coach
Sustrans
Torbay NHS FT
Torbay Velo Park
Torbay Council

 

CoCars and CoBikes
TCCT
Torbay Athletic club
St Mathias church
Bay Cycles
Prospect Brixham
Prospect Brixham