Agenda, decisions and minutes

The agenda and reports associated with this minute can be located here.  Please note that if any changes are made to this minute at the point of approval, these will be outlined in the subsequent minute and this document will not be retrospectively altered.

The Convener proposed that the Committee consider item 10.1 (Updates on Council Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Schemes – Exempt Appendix) with the press and public excluded from the meeting.

The Committee resolved:-

in terms of Section 50A(4) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, to exclude the press and public from the meeting during consideration of the above item so as to avoid disclosure of information of the class described in paragraphs 6 and 9 of Schedule 7(A) to the Act.

The following transparency statements were noted:-

·       In relation to item 9.8 (Aberdeen to Laurencekirk Multimodal Corridor Study), Councillor Hutchison advised, for reasons of transparency that he was the Chairperson of the NESTRANS Board, but that he did not consider this amounted to an interest which needed to be declared, and would therefore be remaining in the meeting for that item.

·       In relation to item 9.8 (Aberdeen to Laurencekirk Multimodal Corridor Study), the Convener and Vice Convener advised, for reasons of transparency that they were members of the NESTRANS Board, but that they did not consider this amounted to an interest which needed to be declared, and would therefore be remaining in the meeting for that item.

The Committee had before it the minute of its previous meeting of 9 September 2025 for approval.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the minute as a correct record.

The Committee had before it the business planner as prepared by the Chief Officer – Governance.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       in relation to item 9 (Building Performance Criteria - Energy Efficiency) to instruct the Chief Officer – Corporate Landlord to submit a report following completion of the review of the Building Performance Policy and that the item be moved under the to be confirmed (tbc) section;

(ii)      to agree to remove item 42 (Annual Report – Northern Roads Collaboration Joint Committee due it not meeting and the local authorities involved being unable to support a committee at this time; and

(iii)      to otherwise note the business planner.

The Committee had before it a report by the Executive Director - City Regeneration and Environment which considered objections and comments received as part of the statutory consultation process with respect to proposed Traffic Regulation Orders (TROs).

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      acknowledge the objections received as a result of the public advertisement of proposed Traffic Regulation Orders;

(b)      in relation to “THE ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL (Roads surrounding the Event Complex Aberdeen (TECA), Dyce, Aberdeen) (Traffic Management) Order 2023” note the objection received and approve this order be made as originally advertised;

(c)      in relation to "THE ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL (Kingswood Drive, Aberdeen) (Prohibition of Waiting) Order 202(X)” note the objections received and approve this order be made as originally advertised;

(d)      in relation to “THE ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL (Pavement Parking

Exemption No.2) Order 202_”, note the objections received for Ferrier

Crescent, Sandilands Drive and Kerloch Place, remove Corndavon Terrace from the effects of the order and approve this order be made as modified, with the removal of Corndavon Terrace which should be advertised as per the recommendation 2.5;

(e)      in relation to “THE ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL (Corndavon Terrace / Derry Avenue / Derry Place, Aberdeen) (Prohibition of Waiting) Order 202(X)”, advertise an updated proposed order that reflects the revisions set out in Appendix 22;

(f)       in relation to "THE ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL (Ferrier Crescent, Aberdeen) (Prohibition of Waiting) Order 202X”, note the objections received and approve this order be made as originally advertised;

(g)      in relation to "THE ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL (Sandilands Drive, Aberdeen) (Prohibition of Waiting) Order 202X”, note the objections received and approve this order be made as originally advertised;

(h)      in relation to "THE ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL (Cromwell Gardens,

Aberdeen) (Prohibition of Waiting) Order 202X”, note the objections received and approve this order be made as originally advertised;

(i)       in relation to "THE ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL (Bright Street, Aberdeen) (Prohibition of Waiting) Order 202X”, note the objections received and approve this order be made as originally advertised; and

(j)       in relation to "THE ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL (Kerloch Place, Aberdeen) (Prohibition of Waiting) Order 202X”, note the objections received and approve this order be made as originally advertised.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       to defer consideration of recommendation (b) “THE ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL (Roads surrounding the Event Complex Aberdeen (TECA), Dyce, Aberdeen) (Traffic Management) Order 2023”; and

(ii)       to approve the remaining recommendations as set out in the report, with the exception of recommendation (c) which was replaced with "THE ABERDEEN CITY COUNCIL (Kingswood Drive, Aberdeen) (Prohibition of Waiting) Order 202(X)” to note the objections received and amend the order to a prohibition of waiting (single yellow line) operational on weekdays during the following hours 8.30 am – 9.15 am and 2.45 pm – 3.30 pm.

The Committee had before it a report by the Executive Director – City Regeneration and Environment which set out the quantifiable impact of the £1 off-street parking fees after 5pm, 6-month trial between May and October 2024.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee -

(a)      note the analysis carried out on the parking transactions and that the scheme was successful in attracting additional patronage of ACC off-street car parks after 5pm; and

(b)      acknowledge that the cost of running such promotions, impacts the parking income for Aberdeen City Council.

The Convener, seconded by the Vice Convener, moved:-

that the Committee -

(a)      note the analysis carried out on the parking transactions and that the scheme was successful in attracting additional patronage of ACC off-street car parks after 5pm; and

(b)      welcome the decision by the Finance and Resources Committee on 5th November 2025 to authorise a further 5pm to 8am £1 off-street parking scheme between 5th January and 28th February 2026.

Councillor Tissera, seconded by Councillor Ali, moved as an amendment:-

that the Committee -

(a)      note the report; and

(b)      instructs the Chief Officer – Governance to carry out an analytic desk top study into the success or otherwise of attracting additional patronage by reducing parking charges, on the off street car parks identified in the report, by 20% as per Aberdeen Labour budget proposals in the 2025 budget and to report back to the budget process for 2026 budget. 

On a division, there voted:- for the motion (5) – the Convener; Vice Convener; and Councillors Henrickson, Hutchison and van Sweeden; for the amendment (4) – Councillors Ali, Brooks, Nicoll and Tissera.

The Committee resolved:-

to adopt the motion.

With reference to article 7 of the minute of its meeting of 16 January 2024,  the Committee had before it a report by the Executive Director – City Regeneration and Environment which advised on the outcomes of the Strategic Car Parking Review.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      note the outcomes of the updated Strategic Car Parking Review, as per Appendices 1 and 2; and

(b)      agree that the findings and recommendations of the Strategic Car Parking Review be considered in the development of the refreshed Local Transport Strategy and the Aberdeen Rapid Transit Outline Business Case.

During discussion of the report, there was mention of NHS Grampian, and the Convener stated for reasons of transparency that he was a member of NHS Grampian Board but did not consider that this required to be a declaration of interest and that he would be participating in the remainder of the item.

The Convener, seconded by the Vice Convener, moved the recommendations as set out in the report.

Councillor Tissera, seconded by Councillor Ali, moved as an amendment:-

that the Committee –

(a)      notes the report;

(b)      recognises that the Virtual Parking Permits system outlined within the report had benefits however those benefits were impractical for residents who do not have ready internet access because of the requirement to update registration details for every visiting vehicle, therefore instructs the Chief Officer - Governance to report back to Committee in the next six months with suggestions as to how these virtual parking permits can more fully benefit the whole community;

(c)      notes that the report highlights comparisons of parking charges across other local authorities which highlights Aberdeen parking permits for both residents and business were higher than 4 out of 5 of the other comparable Councils; and

(d)      notes the SNP administration’s continued delay in moving forward with a Strategic Car Parking Review and instructs the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to report back to the Committee in the next six months on how the findings and recommendations of the Review could be taken forward in advance of the Local Transport Strategy development.   

Councillor Brooks, seconded by Councillor Nicoll, moved as a further amendment:-

that the Committee –

(a)      notes the report and its contents in relation to the Low Emission Zones (LEZ): “not significantly impacting on the city centre car park accessibility.”

(b)      notes that the report states the “the city centre traffic management changes do not preclude the ability for people to access car parks in the city centre.”

(c)      notes the visible reduction in footfall in the city centre and the reduced use of carparking facilities since the 5% administration increase in parking charges as part of the 2025 Budget process;

(d)      further notes that the Air Quality Annual Progress report (Table 2 in Item 9.10) shows that these features (LEZ and Traffic Management changes) are barely making any changes to the air quality; and

(e)      therefore, instructs the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to report  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

With reference to article 10 of the minute of its meeting of 27 March 2024, the Committee had before it a report by the Executive Director – City Regeneration and Environment which sought approval for the adoption of a revised and refreshed Travel Plan for Aberdeen City Council.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee -

(a)      note the work undertaken to date to prepare the draft Aberdeen City Council Travel Plan (2025);

(b)      approve the adoption of the draft Aberdeen City Council Travel Plan (2025) as detailed in Appendix A;

(c)       instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to monitor the impact of the Plan and to report progress on a biennial basis – every two years – to the Net Zero, Environment and Transport Committee by way of Service Update; and

(d)      instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning and Chief Officer - People and Citizen Services to update the Staff Travel Policy and report a draft of the Policy to the Staff Governance Committee within the next 12 months.

The Convener, seconded by the Vice Convener, moved the recommendations as outlined in the report.

Councillor Tissera, seconded by Councillor Ali, moved as an amendment:-

that the Committee -

(a)      notes the report; and

(b)      agrees to defer the decision on the adoption of the draft Aberdeen City Council Travel Plan (2025) until the first Net Zero, Environment and Transport Committee meeting which follows the upcoming decision by the Finance and Resources Committee in respect of the eBike hire scheme after officers withdrew the eBike hire scheme report at the Finance and Resources Committee on 6th November 2025.

On a division, there voted:- for the motion (5) – the Convener; the Vice Convener; and Councillors Henrickson, Hutchison and van Sweeden; for the amendment (4) – Councillors Ali, Brooks, Nicoll and Tissera.

The Committee resolved:-

to adopt the motion.

The Committee had before it a report by the Executive Director – City Regeneration and Environment which sought approval for (1) the new

combined Council Climate and Nature Summary 2024/25 (CCNS) which was  a nontechnical report on related Council activity over the period; and (2) the Climate Change Duties Report (CCR) which was a technical, statutory return for the same period; the latter being required under Part 4 of the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee:-

(a)      approve the Council Climate and Nature Summary 2024/25, as detailed in Appendix 1;

(b)      approve the Climate Change Duties Report 2024/25, as detailed in Appendix 2;

(c)      instruct the Chief Officer - Strategic Place Planning to submit the Climate

Change Duties Report to Scottish Government prior to the reporting deadline of 30 November 2025;

(d)      instruct the Chief Officer - Strategic Place Planning to complete design of the Council Climate and Nature Summary, and publish both Reports on the Council’s website; and

(e)      instruct the Chief Officer - Strategic Place Planning to report back to this

Committee with a Climate and Nature Summary alongside the statutory return on an annual basis.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       in relation to a question around whether there was scope to increasing retrofitting in houses, to note that officers would circulate information to Members out with the meeting;

(ii)       in relation to a question around secure cycle storage and where the next project would be situated, to note that officers would circulate information to Members out with the meeting;

(iii)      in relation to a question around whether paths with no trees would be considered for future tree planting, to note that officers would circulate information to Members out with the meeting;

(iv)      in relation to a question around how many gullies were cleared on an annual basis and whether this would require to be expanded if more trees were planted, to note that officers would circulate information to Members out with the meeting;

(v)      in relation to a question around the hydrogen bus project, noting that the facility had been out of operation for 18months, and whether accurate 2025 saving figures could be provided along with information on what type of buses were running during the period and whether this had been included in the figures provided, to note that officers would circulate information to Members out with the meeting; and

(vi)      to otherwise approve the recommendations contained in the report.

The Committee had before it a report by the Executive Director – City Regeneration and Environment which presented the Core Paths Programme: Investment Priorities 2026/27 - 2028/29 for approval.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee –

(a)      note the methodology and analysis in this report regarding the Core Path Programme: Investment Priorities 2026/27 – 2028/29;

(b)      approve the Core Paths Programme: Investment Priorities 2026/27 - 2028/29; and

(c)      instruct the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning to report back to this Committee in June 2026 with a fully scoped and costed set of Core Path improvement projects informed by the Core Paths Programme: Investment Priorities.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       to note that officers would circulate information to Members out with the meeting in relation to Developer Obligations monies aligned to Core Path networks;

(ii)       to note that officers would circulate a high resolution map to Members out with the meeting;

(iii)      to instruct officers to update the Core Path maps on the website; and

(iv)      to otherwise approve the recommendations contained in the report.

The Committee had before it a report by the Executive Director City Regeneration and Environment which presented the status of appropriate key performance measures relating to services falling within its remit.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee note the report and provide comments and observations on the performance information contained in the report Appendix.

The Committee resolved:-

(i)       in relation to the figures presented for waste diverted to landfill, specifically for the period where the energy for waste system was not operational, to note that officers would check the figures presented in the report and circulate information to Members out with the meeting; and

(ii)      to note the report and instruct the Chief Officer – Operations to provide a Service Update for the meeting in March 2026 on the recent road closures due to SSEN works in the south of the city including the reasons why the roads were closed for a longer period than advertised and for the update to contain details of the additional financial charges (if any) made by the Council to contractors for the roads being closed longer than advertised; noting that members could ask questions on the Service Update at the Committee if required.

With reference to article 3 of the minute of meeting of Council of 5 March 2025, the Committee had before it a report by the Executive Director – City Regeneration and Environment which provided an update on the progress of the various electric vehicle (EV) charging projects that the council was working to deliver.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee -

(a)      note the progress made to date on the delivery of electric vehicle charging infrastructure;

(b)      instruct the Chief Officer - Strategic Place Planning, following consultation with the Chief Officer - Governance and Chief Officer - Commercial and Procurement Services to continue to engage with the Council’s preferred supplier, to establish if a feasible on-street residential trial can be established;

(c)      instruct the Chief Officer - Strategic Place Planning, following consultation with the Chief Officer - Commercial and Procurement Services, if a feasible on-street trial is deemed possible, to enter into a time-limited pilot agreement with the preferred supplier, and report back to the relevant committee once the trial concludes on lessons learned; and

(d)      instruct the Chief Officer - Strategic Place Planning to continue to work with the Chief Officer - Operations and the Chief Officer - Corporate Landlord to increase the size of the Council's EV charging estate for its own fleet vehicles.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations contained in the report.

At this juncture, the Vice Convener stated for reasons of transparency that in relation to the following item of business (Updates on Council Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Schemes) that she was the owner of an Electric Vehicle but did not consider that this amounted to a declaration which would prevent her from participating in the item.

With reference to article 13 of the minute of meeting of the North East Scotland Transport Partnership Board (Nestrans) of 25 June 2025, the Committee had before it a report by the Executive Director – City Regeneration and Environment which (1) advised on the outcomes of the Aberdeen to Laurencekirk Multimodal Corridor Study; and (2) sought endorsement of the Nestrans Board decision to progress a local rail station Strategic Business Case.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee -

(a)      note the outcomes of the Nestrans Aberdeen to Laurencekirk Multimodal Corridor Study Detailed Options Appraisal, and the progress already underway by Aberdeen City Council to further develop the relevant active travel and bus based recommendations for the City;

(b)      note the decisions of the Nestrans Board at their meeting of 25 June 2025 in relation to this item;

(c)      endorse the approval of the Nestrans Board to progress the local rail station elements of the Detailed Appraisal Report to a Strategic Business Case; and

(d)      agree that relevant Aberdeen City Council teams will work with Nestrans to support the preparation of the Strategic Business Case (as relevant to Aberdeen City), and that the outcomes of the Strategic Business Case will be communicated back to this Committee before the end of 2026.

The Committee resolved:-

to approve the recommendations contained in the report.

The Committee had before it a report by the Executive Director – Corporate Services which provided an update on the annual air quality monitoring results for 2024.

The report recommended:-

that the Committee -

(a)      note the findings of the 2025 Air Quality Progress Report (APR) for Aberdeen City Council; and

(b)      agree that subsequent Air Quality Annual Progress Reports revert to being provided to Members through Service Updates.

The Convener, seconded by the Vice Convener, moved the recommendations contained in the report.

Councillor Tissera, seconded by Councillor Ali, moved as an amendment:-

that the Committee:-

(a)      notes the findings of the 2025 Air Quality Progress Report (APR) for Aberdeen City Council; and

(b)      instructs the Chief Officer – Strategic Place Planning following consultation  with the Chief Officer – Governance to provide a quantitative and qualitative report into the findings of the 2025 (APR) for Aberdeen City Council to compare and contrast if the LEZ is making a difference to Air Quality within its impacted areas, and to report the outcomes of this quantitative and qualitative report back to this Committee by Summer 2026, with this work to be funded by General Fund contingency budget.

Councillor Brooks, seconded by Councillor Nicoll, moved as a further amendment:-

that Committee:-

(a)      note the findings of the 2025 Air Quality Progress Report (APR) for Aberdeen City Council;

(b)      agree that this report is not degraded to a Service Update because the APR provides important information to the Committee; and

(c)      therefore instructs the Chief Officer – Governance to continue reporting the findings of the Air Quality Progress Report to this Committee on an annual basis. 

There being a motion and two amendments, the Committee first divided between the two amendments.

On a division, there voted:- for the amendment by Councillor Tissera (2) – Councillors Ali and Tissera; for the amendment by Councillor Brooks (2) – Councillors Brook and Nicoll; declined to vote (5) – the Convener; the Vice Convener and Councillors Henrickson, Hutchison and van Sweeden.

As there was a tied vote, in terms of Standing Order 32.7, the Convener had the casting vote, however in terms of Standing Order 32.7.1, the Convener chose not to exercise his casting vote, therefore the Clerk advised that a lot would be drawn to decide the outcome of the tied vote. Following which, the amendment by Councillor Tissera was successful and would be put to the vote against the motion.

On a division, there voted:- for the motion (5) – the Convener; Vice Convener  and Councillors Henrickson, Hutchison and van Sweeden; for the amendment by Councillor Tissera (4) – Councillors Ali, Brooks, Nicoll and Tissera.

The Committee resolved:-

to adopt the motion.

The Committee had before it an exempt appendix relating to item 9.8 (Updates on Council Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Schemes). (Article 12 of this minute refers)

The Committee resolved:-

to note the information contained within the exempt appendix.

-         COUNCILLOR IAN YUILL, Convener