Provision of new bus stops within the city

Acknowledgement: FOI 17242

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Freedom of Information Team

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Dear Samuel

Please find below in blue answers to your recently submitted FOI.

I hope these are of assistance.

 1. Does Newcastle City Council carry out routine replacement of bus stops
and shelters? If so what criteria must be met for upgrade/replacement
?

For clarification Nexus are responsible for bus stops throughout the City
and the City Council are responsible for bus shelters. Currently the
replacement of bus shelters is looked at on a case by case basis not as a
matter of routine.

 2. Are new bus stops, i.e those installed within the last 3 months, paid
for by Newcastle City Council or a third party?

Nexus are responsible for the installation and maintenance of bus stops
throughout the City.  Email address at Nexus is [1][email address] if you
require further information from them.

     2a. If Newcastle City Council funds these stops/shelters what is the
cost of each of these or the update project as a whole?

If a bus shelter were to be installed the price of  purchasing and
installation would depend on the type of shelter required and its proposed
location - costs vary from site to site.

 3. Was any manner of consultation carried out for the purpose of
identifying the requirement or impact of bus stops/shelters with
digital billboards and screens?

The display of advertisements is subject to a separate consent process
within the planning system. This is principally set out in the [2]Town and
Country Planning (Control of Advertisements) (England) Regulations
2007. There is no statutory requirement for a local planning authority to
publicise applications for advertisement consent. In the case of the
recent bus shelter advertisement applications, the Council consulted local
ward councillors on each application, as well as the Council's Highways
team with any responses taken into consideration.

 4. Which requirements from Newcastle City Council, if any, must be met in
order to place adverts on bus stops/shelters within the city ?

Advertisements are controlled with reference to their effect on amenity
and public safety only, so the regime is lighter touch than the system for
obtaining planning permission for development.

“Amenity” is not defined exhaustively in the Town and Country Planning
(Control of Advertisements) (England) Regulations 2007.  It includes aural
and visual amenity (regulation 2(1) and factors relevant to amenity
include the general characteristics of the locality, including the
presence of any feature of historic, architectural, cultural or similar
interest (regulation 3(2)(a)).

It is, however, a matter of interpretation by the Council (and the
Secretary of State) as it applies in any particular case.  In practice,
“amenity” is usually understood to mean the effect on visual and aural
amenity in the immediate neighbourhood of an advertisement or site for the
display of advertisements, where residents or passers-by will be aware of
the advertisement.

So, in assessing amenity, the Council will consider the local
characteristics of the neighbourhood: for example, if the locality where
the advertisement is to be displayed has important scenic, historic,
architectural or cultural features, the local planning authority would
consider whether it is in scale and in keeping with these features.

Impacts upon public safety include highways and railway impacts, aircraft
and waterways.

Proposed advertisements must be assessed against relevant local plan
policies within the Development and Allocations Plan and Core Strategy and
Urban Core Plan. Applications determined in the past may have also had to
consider the saved policies within the Unitary Development Plan.  The
relevance of policies is very much site-dependent.

Often relevant are policies in relation to Highways Mitigation, Design,
Impacts upon the Historic Environment and any area-specific policies (such
as the Urban Core).  Also relevant are the potential impacts upon the
character of Conservation Areas and listed buildings, accompanied by
management plans and listing descriptions respectively.  The relevant
extracts of the National Planning Policy Framework must also be considered
material to the determination of advertisement applications.

If it is considered that an advertisement, by virtue of its design and
siting would result in a harmful impact upon either public safety or
amenity, the Council may refuse advertisement consent.  In this case,
applicants have a right of appeal with the Planning Inspectorate. 
Conversely, where it is considered that an advertisement would not result
in any harmful impacts upon public safety or amenity, the Council may
grant advertisement consent, with any necessary conditions imposed (such
as limiting brightness) as part of a consent.

4a.  Has Newcastle City Council ever removed any manner of advertising
from bus stops/shelters or other billboard in Newcastle due to content? 

Any advertisements placed in bus shelters must be in accordance with
Newcastle City Council’s Advertising Policy and the T&C Planning
Regulations.  The City Council’s contractor (Clear Channel UK) are fully
aware of these and therefore they have not been requested to remove an
advertisement from a bus shelter advertising panel.    

 5. Does Newcastle City Council have contracts with JCDecaux/Clearchannel
or other advertising companies to provide bus stops/shelters within
Newcastle?

Clear Channel UK have the contract for the provision, installation,
repairs and maintenance of both advertising and non advertising bus
shelters in Newcastle.

Regards

Tarnia Hamilton

Contract Monitoring Officer

Place Directorate

Newcastle City Council

Stratford House

Newington Road East

Newcastle Upon Tyne

NE2 1PX

Phone: 0191 2115638

[mobile number]

Email: [email address]

Website: www.newcastle.gov.uk

PLEASE CONSIDER THE ENVIRONMENT BEFORE PRINTING THIS EMAIL

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