July 2025 Minutes

Minutes of the meeting of High Lane Residents’ Association

Date: 3rd July 2025                                                                                                                        Time: 8pm

Venue: High Lane Village Hall

Present:  Caroline Smith; David Burks; Sue Forrester; Barry Sequeira; Angie Sequeira; Darrell Williams; John Baker; Cllr Aron Thornley and Sue Stevenson

Apologies: Eryl Hughes; Dr Lisa Robinson-Hall and Cllr Shan Alexander

    • Caroline thanked everyone for attending and welcomed Sue Stevenson (Head of Highways and Transportation from Stockport Council) to the meeting. She explained that as the A6 MARR report is the only item on the agenda, the monthly finance report and building applications are available as hand-outs. Caroline hoped that everyone had seen the reply document created by Darrell. Residents had been invited to ask questions for Sue Stevenson via the contact email address for HLRA and these had been put forward to Sue during a pre-meeting.
    • Minutes of the last meeting – approved
    • Police and Crime Report - none provided
    • Finances

This report covers June financial period

The HLRA General account

       We started May with a balance of  £5,445.94

Income

We had no income in June

Total Income £0.00.

Expenditure

The outgoings from the account for June were:

      1. The payment of the expenses for the May litter pick of £33.12
      2. The payment for the village hall hire for the May meeting, a payment of £20.00
      3. The payment of expenses to David Burks, for the purchase of Bluebell Bulbs to be planted in Hartley woods to bloom next spring  £154.49
      4. The Lloyds bank account monthly charge of  £4.25
      5. The payment of expenses to Warren and Alison Peake for soil, compost and plants for the Planters which they tend around the village £61.10
      6. One payment to IONOS for the website monthly charge of £9.00
      7. The payment for the village hall hire for the June meeting, and for a separate committee meeting £25.00

The total expense being  £306.96

Balance going forward to May is  £ 5,138.98

       John Baker

 

    • State of the War memorial account

Receipts June                                    £42.12

Expenditure                                        £228 not yet cashed from May cheques issued for plants and compost

Present balance                                 £2026

WB Sequeira

 

    • Planning applications
    1. Roselaya Buxton Rd HAZEL GROVE    DC/095904. Minor amendment /variation of condition 1 of DC/083916 to comprise amendment to design of approved dwelling house. Seems a minor amendment, nothing that can be objected to although I am still not happy with this approval, there is enough traffic on the A6 without adding more entry and exits, Appears to be another infill up the A6.
    2. Higher Farm Threaphurst LaneDC/095747. Have no comments OFN
    3. Greenways 6 Wellington Road H Grove DC/095989 - demolition of existing and erection of  dwellings comprising two blocks of 3 bedroom house with associated parking. Location fronting  A6 Buxton Rd near to Norbury Hollows Rd Hazel Grove - seems to be in our ward. At the same address  DC/008147 single storey rear conservatory.
    4. 14 Meadway DC/096060 - demolish existing conservatory and replace with rear extension. OFN
    5. Land at Torkington Rd H Grove SK7 6NW  DC/096042 (very interesting). Installation and operation of ground mounted photovoltaic (PV) solar energy generation system (solar farm) with associated infrastructure, access, landscaping and boundary treatments.  
    6. 27 Fletcher Drive DC/096190. Remove width of works to garage and less works to retaining walls/structures  OFN
    7. 14 Park Rd DC/096184. Variation of conditions 1&3 of DC/089247. Front and rear 2 storey extension, side extension over garage and alteration to the roof (including increase in ridge height) to provide additional accommodation. Rear balcony. External alterations.  OFN

 

A6 MARR 5-year report

Sue started off by thanking everyone for inviting her and proceeded to explain the background and context of the A6 MARR report and how it relates to the A6 in High Lane:

  • Data collection is always a snapshot collected over a period of time and the report is across Manchester, Cheshire East and Stockport and highlights the key roads in those areas. It is collected for a specific purpose – to demonstrate what happens as a consequence of building a new road. A 1-year report after the road opened was issued initially and then the 5-year report followed. Sue explained that the 5-year report isn’t complete yet – data has been collected on the traffic, air quality and noise but she is still waiting for the economic and environmental part of the report. Once all the data has been collected this report will go back to the government and will be available on the SMBC website. Sue apologised to those who initially struggled to find the report – there are links available on the SMBC website.
  • Traffic and transportation links - the traffic counts were taken in Disley, in High Lane this side of Carr Brow and the Stockport side of Windlehurst Road. From Disley to High Lane traffic counts took place over 24 hours for 2 weeks (a neutral time avoiding school holidays) of both the HGVs and part of the general traffic movement. The annual average daily traffic (Carr Brow area) = 17100 and south of Windlehurst = 27600. Another count was undertaken in June.

Question:- when analysing the data, do the figures include any input from High Peak bus services or logistic companies and surely they are impacted by the A6 eg a disrupted bus timetable and the timing of transport schedules that must have to be adjusted? A remark was made that there must be a cost to the economy to have delivery drivers stuck in traffic every day. A resident suggested talking to the “199 bus” drivers to get their view on this.

Reply:- Sue replied that this hasn’t been raised as an issue. The biggest disruption for the 199 is sometimes from Stockport to Manchester Airport. She continued to say that investment in the north of the country is much less that in the south which is evident by the quality of the roads and it is still council policy to build the rest of the planned road network.

Comment:- when and if the council changes again that policy won’t stand.

Reply:- the local planning consultation is due with new transport strategies coming forward and Sue recommends that the village needs to be proactive in saying this is what we need, this is what we want and by producing evidence of what has happened as a consequence of the building of the A555 and of increased building in the Peak District. Then a business case can be put forward to the council. This includes lobbying about public transport and travel routes and lobbying about railway stations.

Question:- a resident considers the A555 as quite a dangerous road and reported an issue with junction changes at Fiveways. She asked if there would be a review on the changes to the Fiveways junction?

Reply:- Sue replied that the way the junction at Fiveways was constructed was the way local residents and councillors wanted it built and that there are signs in place warning vehicles of queuing traffic but she admitted that it is a very busy junction.

Question: – a lot of vehicles are not going along the A6 through Disley. They are using Carr Brow and Jacksons Edge Road. Would that alter some of the figures on the report?

Aron wanted to point out a couple of things:- that the vehicle count from the report doesn’t measure a single car travelling down Carr Brow, through Meadway and down Andrew Lane, turning right at Windlehurst Road, left at Torkington Lane and left again at Threaphurst Lane because the measurement point on Torkington Lane is beyond Threaphurst. 200 cars are using Threaphurst in the morning and 500 cars using Meadway. He continued to say that High Lane Village will get a bypass in 15 years or 50 years but until that happens roads like Meadway, Hartington Road, Park Road, Russell Avenue and Thornway need funding put in place to mitigate the speed of those cars and support the residents who live on the roads mentioned. Aron finished by saying that Manchester City Council and Manchester Airport wanted the A555 built so surely they have a responsibility along with Stockport Council to provide that funding. Businesses are benefitting from the construction of the A555 but Disley and High Lane have been severely impacted. The A6 and High Lane should be priority based on recent evidence over 7 years and Stockport Council should address this before anything else.

Reply: - Sue said she would take the comments back to the council but every single councillor has a list of issues in their areas. All data collected provides information which adds to the case for High Lane and Sue is happy to talk to the residents in question and be part of that discussion process but there is less and less choice where monies are allocated eg growth corridors and main housing developments. She did emphasise that counts took place on Windlehurst, Carr Brow and over the Ridge and she thought that vehicles rat running using Meadway and Thornway wouldn’t affect the figures to a great extent.

She continued to say that even if the A555 hadn’t been constructed the amount of new housing in the Peak District is a major cause of increased traffic in High Lane and not the A555 although it is a pull. More people are going back to work now since Covid and some households often have up to 2 or 3 cars therefore there can be a higher proportion of adults moving around. Sue agreed that the A6 is a very busy road but the monitoring doesn’t explain why the traffic is changing. It could be a change in how people are working. Morning and evening peak times used to be the busiest time on the roads but now it’s a consistent volume of traffic using the A6 all day with people taking a trip out to the Peak District to walk etc. People use Google Maps to plan a direct and fastest route out to the Peaks which is often the A6. More HGVs are coming through the village at night to avoid the congestion on the A6. The A6 is more volatile in terms of HGV movements but there hasn’t been as many quarry wagons as they are being advised by the government to use rail transport instead of road and it also depends on building work that is ongoing.

The A57 road from Sheffield to Manchester is frequently used by HGVs but it is being improved at the moment so that may account for more HGVs coming through High Lane. Sue thought it may be interesting to see what happens as regards to the volume of traffic after the work has been completed. The A57 is also subject to bad weather so the A6 is then busier. Also there are more delivery vans on the roads now eg supermarket deliveries and more people shopping online.

Comment: - side roads are being used more frequently eg Threaphurst and Torkington Road so in theory all the counting that has taken place is not correct.

Reply:- Sue reassured the meeting that there is data available for Torkington Road albeit positive or negative.

Question:- why was Threaphurst designated a “Quiet Lane” when it’s used by vehicles as a rat run?

Reply:- Sue answered that it is a way of highlighting to motorists that walkers, cyclists and horses regularly use the road and the residents of Threaphurst had requested that status.

Question:- queuing and often standing traffic for long periods of time from Windlehurst Road to the entrance to Lyme Park – from the Council’s point of view do you think this is acceptable?

Reply:- the policy answer for Greater Manchester is to encourage people where possible to use public transport, walk and cycle.

Comment:- the population of High Lane are mostly too old to cycle and we also have an unsatisfactory bus service. A promised cycle lane along the A6 after the A555 was built never happened and considering the increase of traffic especially heavy goods on the A6 and the number of cyclists either killed or injured, this is an issue that needs some consideration.

Reply:- Sue agreed that public transportation really matters and hopefully after the review by Transport for Greater Manchester she is certain that local councillors will push for a better bus service. The balance between costs and subsidies comes into consideration when trying to get the best bus services across Greater Manchester. The proposed A6 cycle lane was turned down by local councillors because the carriageway would have to be narrowed to make way for a shared footpath between pedestrians and cyclists. This would have created a safety issue for horse riders. Installing a cycle route would be costly and may involve the purchase of private land in order to widen the pavements (which are poorly maintained according to a local resident). It was noted that according to one resident the cycle lane on Jacksons Lane is hardly used although Sue begged to differ and she was asked to make the bus service priority rather than cycle lanes. A Bee network representative was made aware recently of the service that High Lane residents need eg a direct link to Stepping Hill Hospital.

Question:- there is an opportunity to make Middlewood Station more accessible to people – why hasn’t it been acted upon?

Reply:- there has been some work carried out from the A6 to the cricket club to improve the walking route. The surrounding area of Middlewood Station is wooded and is inhabited by protected species of wildlife, birds etc so there are limitations as to what can be done. Part of the council’s overall plan was to look at moving the station closer to the centre of High Lane (near Brookside Park) to provide better access. Lack of funding means this project hasn’t been developed yet.

Comment:- wouldn’t there be lack of parking space for a re-located station?

Reply: - Woodsmoor and Davenport don’t have parking facilities - the station would be a “walk to” station and the council would want people to walk there.

Comment: - lack of transport links in High Lane eg tram and bus services so it’s not like for like. An opportunity has been missed to link the train line to the A555.

Reply:- Sue explained that when the modelling was done for the A555 High Lane residents were told that they would be adversely impacted. The increase of new houses being built in the Peak District has increased the traffic in High Lane. Stockport Council’s housing plan is due to come out for consultation in the autumn and Sue emphasised that High Lane residents need to look at it and in submit their opinions in terms of infrastructure and housing.

Question:- what is the end conclusion? Does High Lane village get a bypass built? Do we get funding for it?

Reply:- the monitoring report looks at what happens after the construction of the A555 – nothing happens as a result. The conclusion looks at “was it good value-for-money to build the A555?” and “what are the benefits or otherwise of having done so?”  Looking forward is what goes into local planning next time round using data compiled from the construction of the A555 and people are better informed as a result.

Comment:- a report was issued in 2006 saying that the A6 was over capacity then.

Reply:- Sue told the meeting that she was actively involved in the A555 and thought that it was the right road to build but the correct infrastructure is needed to support development eg the right public transport and active travel routes and network to support it.

Question:- are there still plans in place to extend the A555 up to the M60 at Bredbury?

Reply:- it’s still in place as council policy in the local plan as a saved route and when the local plan comes out again the public will be able to see what it says this time round. Comments were made on the impact of a link to the M60 at Bredbury.

Comment:- a resident thought that it wasn’t fair when Sue said the reason the A6 has increased traffic is because people have more cars. She disagreed with this statement and in her opinion the increased traffic is due to the building of the A555 and asked isn’t there bad traffic on other roads?

Reply:- there is more traffic everywhere across Greater Manchester and it is very difficult to generalise.

Question:- what is the long-term plan to alleviate High Lane? Congestion charges were mentioned but that policy has been ruled out.

Reply: - the local transport plan involving all parts of Greater Manchester is to encourage people to use public transport, walk and cycle.

Comment:- a resident argued that to use public transport the village needs better connection links and went on to say that High Lane residents have been asking for the 192 to extend its route to include High Lane. If Greater Manchester want residents to use the bus then provide one. Rates are paid by High Lane residents to Greater Manchester and yet there are no buses that service the village under the Bee Network scheme.

Reply:- up until 2025 Stagecoach ran the 192 as a commercial route but from January 2025 we are part of the Bee Network under the control of Greater Manchester and they took over the same routes that were running at the time. The Bee Network has made a commitment that longer term across Greater Manchester to look at connectivity and then they will review all areas to see what the needs are in terms of bus services - for Stockport the review is due in 2026/2027 and the public will have the opportunity to express their views . Ultimately bus services come at a cost and need to be self-sustaining but it was argued that a 192 coming to High Lane every half an hour wouldn’t break the bank!

Comment:- a resident spoke about Park & Ride and stated that it is owned by Stagecoach and that they are quite capable of selling it on. Half the parking area has been sold off already and the rest may be sold off for building. The resident in question had spoken to Andy Burnham and was told that he wasn’t aware of that fact and the question was asked “what chance have we of getting a bus?”  

David (HLRA) reassured the meeting that the association have been and are pushing for an additional bus service to High Lane and have the backing of Lisa Smart (our local MP) but nothing will happen until at least 2026. He also emphasised that HLRA work closely with the HLVNF.

Comment:-  a resident disagreed that all railway stations should have parking. He suggested that the bridleway at Middlewood Station be upgraded and a shuttle bus provided to take railway users to and from the station. The village has no need of a double decker bus but the 394’s route could be extended to serve Middlewood Station.

  • Air Quality

Sue explained that as part of this study there is an air quality monitor along the A6; one near the library and some others situated along the A6 corridor and as a council Stockport monitor air quality on the A6 as part of Greater Manchester air quality strategy – this monitor is near The Bulls Head. The annual report and data can be found on the GMCA clean-air website. The air quality data in this report was found to be mostly within the acceptable limits. The continuous exposure level limit [annual mean concentration of nitrogen dioxide] is 40µg/m3 and the peak exposure level limit [hourly mean concentration of nitrogen dioxide] is 200µg/m3 [where there should be no more than 18 exceedances in a single year]. The air quality on the A6 in this report looks at the monitor near the library in particular. Tubes are collected once a month then sent to a laboratory to provide a reading. The air quality point by the library showed a reading of 40.2µg/m3 . An annualisation figure is produced which is applied to the report which then pushed the figure above the national standard.

The air quality point by The Bull’s Head shows a lower reading. This is a permanent monitoring point and the monthly figures can be accessed on the GMCA website. The locations of the monitoring points are very different – the Bulls Head is a much more open area with more space either side of it whereas by the library the location is more enclosed and is subject to pollution from standing traffic.

The report states that the air quality sample took place in 2024 and the annualisation figure was used from 2023 because that was the data available at the time therefore the report needs to be updated with the correct figure. Weather changes and alterations in traffic movement can affect the air quality. Sue thought that the temporary traffic lights in place during the construction of Sainsbury’s in June plus roadworks in Disley showed an increase in air pollution as there was more standing traffic. Traffic queuing for access to Lyme Park especially at the weekends can also raise the air pollution. On the positive side, cleaner engines and electric cars are helping to improve the air quality and within Greater Manchester the introduction of hybrid buses is a positive step forward. The 2024 annualisation figure for High Lane is lower than in 2023.

Comment:- as regards to the 199 a resident thought it would be improbable that a 199 bus could travel from Buxton to Manchester Airport and then undertake a return trip on one electric charge.

Comment:- a resident remarked that he had noticed when vehicles accelerate after passing the speed camera on the A6 you can taste the different chemicals in the air.

Comment:- a disadvantage of electric vehicles is that they cause tyre friction which produces PM 2.5 which is one of the deadliest pollutants – the heavier the vehicle the more they produce.

Reply:- Sue said electric vehicles are part of the answer to air pollution and PM 2.5s can be produced by dust from fields not just from electric vehicles. She went on to say that there are automatic air quality monitoring stations in Hazel Grove and on the A34.

Comment:- a resident reported a queuing problem at the traffic lights outside the Horse Shoe Inn pub and a request was made to install a right-hand filter lane when turning onto Windlehurst Road.

Reply:- Sue replied that the installation of a filter lane may cause longer traffic queues on the A6 from Hazel Grove. She explained that the traffic signals at the Horse Shoe are programmed on a system called MOVA (Microprocessor Optimised Vehicle Actuation) which tries to balance the flow of vehicles and pedestrians crossing the junction but it does cause a delay to traffic movement.

Question:- a resident asked if Sue has ever been queried about High Lane being part of Greater Manchester because a lot of people don’t realise this fact – it is a forgotten area.

Reply:- Sue replied in the negative but emphasised that she knows High Lane is part of Greater Manchester.

Question:- what has happened to the money that was allocated for the HS2 railway network?

Reply:- part of the monies came to Greater Manchester for maintenance purposes. Transport funding comes in 5-year blocks but that funding is now part of a combined settlement for Greater Manchester and can be used for other projects apart from transport. It is decided by Greater Manchester authorities and the mayor to decide where and on what that money is spent. Transport is multimodal (involves or utilises multiple modes or methods); SEMMMS (South-East Manchester Multi-Modal Strategy) is multimodal. Sue has always wanted the best roads, the best rail and the best walk and cycle routes and she doesn’t consider it as an either/or. Most people are sometimes drivers, sometimes pedestrians or use public transport sometimes and a few cycle as well and it is the role of the local authority to try and get the best for all users.

Question:- as regards to the volume of traffic in the area, does SMBC work with the police to obtain the figures from the report? Local traffic monitoring conducted by High Lane residents record the number of vehicles taking short cuts to avoid the A6 and the resulting figures are fed back to Marple Police Station. The resident mentioned that police have been active in Marple stopping vehicles that are driving over the speed limit.

Reply:- Sue replied that she knows this monitoring takes place but hasn’t seen any figures produced from these events. She continued to say that there is collaboration with the police particularly as regards to accidents on the roads.  They still have a responsibility for speeding incidents but over time the police have pulled back from some of the traffic areas and have been less interested in traffic enforcement. SMBC have taken on the responsibility from the beginning of 2025 for parking; weight limits; double-yellow lines and one-way streets etc. In the future, SMBC will look at speed limits and the location and installation of speed cameras. The police have said that local 20 mph speed limits are self-enforcing eg with traffic calming measures.

 

Caroline ended the meeting at 10pm. She said that any further questions can be fed back to Sue. Caroline thanked Sue for attending this meeting and also gave thanks to Darrell on behalf of the HLRA for all his work on the A6MARR: an Evaluation of 5-Year Post-Opening Data from a Local Perspective that he produced. Thanks were also given to Carol for the refreshments.

 

The next HLRA meeting is Thursday 4th September at the Village Hall at 8pm.