Minutes of Bathley Parish Council Meeting 11th March 2020 @ 8pm

Flooding:  Flooding issues at the north end of Bathley were brought to the attention of the council by residents. The issues raised included: houses and gardens at risk of ongoing effects from pluvial flooding off Bathley Hill; historical infill of drains as part of building development; road drainage water exceeding current drain capacity; lack of drain maintenance; road damage due to excess water; lack of sufficient drainage off Bathley Hill exacerbating the flooding around Cogley Lane.  Possible solutions were discussed and a plan was provided showing these suggestions.  It was agreed that Councillor Laughton will convene a site meeting with Highways to take the matter forward.  Cllr Laughton stated that some of the land in question is under riparian ownership so matters will have to be discussed with residents when a proposal is arrived at.

Roads – Pot Holes:  This is an ongoing problem and the Clerk is in communication with Mr Jenrick’s office with regards to a meeting which JH is happy to attend.

Network Rail Meeting:  JH and BC attended the meeting on 19^th February with other parishes north of Newark.  The points made are as follows and a full copy of the notes has been emailed to Councillors.

Objective: Explore ways to improve the function of the Crossing to Pedestrians and Road Users

Basics:

1. Automatic Barrier replaced the man in the box - there were calls for the automation to have a human backup - unlikely on cost.
2. Train Frequency had doubled over this crossing in the last five years - this had a direct impact on time barriers were closed.
3. Maintenance was covered from Derby - calls for cover from Grantham (who look after the East Coast Main Line) - unlikely politics
4. Network Rail admitted Newark "was in a corner" for breakdown cover - to be explored - making Newark a "PRIORITY" as East Coast.

5, Communication between all parties poor - Network Rail, Police, NHS, Councils and Highways to be progressed.

JH proposed the following on behalf of Bathley Parish Council:

Jointly Funded (Network Rail, Newark Town Council, N.S.D.C & Notts C.C.) Independent Monitoring of the Crossing to establish the actual frequency of failures, delays and impact on the road network.

This was expanded on by the Chair to include a cost analysis to business possible to be conducted by the Newark Chamber of Commerce.

Planning Applications: None

Financial Matters:  None

General correspondence:  Correspondence has been emailed to Councillors and noted

AOB:  The 125^th year of Bathley Parish Council history is coming up on the 23^rd April.  Cllrs discussed whether this should be noted and it was agreed to bring it up at the next meeting