Transport, Highways and Parking – Page 7

Shared surface streets: what highway officers want to see

Manual for Streets supports shared surfaces on low flow streets, but highway authorities object on accessibility, adoption and parking. How to answer each on the drawings.

Trip thresholds that trigger a Transport Assessment

National policy sets no transport assessment threshold, so the level of work is agreed locally. How to scope it, which locations lower the bar, and what a statement covers.

Circular 01/2022 and access onto the strategic road network

Access to the strategic road network is resisted under Circular 01/2022, and National Highways can direct a council not to grant permission. What the evidence has to show.

Road safety audit stages and who commissions each one

Stages 1 to 4 of a road safety audit follow the design and construction sequence, and the scheme promoter pays for all of them. The independence rules and the exception report are where the procedure earns its keep.

Bus service contributions and what a council can require

A round number per dwelling with no working behind it struggles against all three tests in regulation 122. Ask what the money buys before agreeing it.

Dropped kerb refusals on a classified road

Permitted development for a new access stops at classified roads. Visibility splays and turning space on the plot decide most of these applications.

When a council asks for junction capacity modelling

Almost every argument about a capacity model is an argument about its inputs. Agree the assessment years, the growth factors and the committed list first.

Emergency vehicle access to a new dwelling or estate road

A house 60 m down a private drive fails the 45 m appliance rule, and nothing in the planning process will tell you. Sort the access on the layout drawing.

Bin storage and carry distances the collection crew accepts

Waste officers object late and for predictable reasons. The 30 m carry distance, the 25 m collection distance and refuse vehicle geometry decide most bin store layouts.

Car-free and permit-free development secured by agreement

Car-free is what you build. Permit-free is what occupiers can apply for afterwards. The second needs a section 106 obligation and a controlled parking zone that actually covers the site.

Construction traffic routing agreements with the highway authority

The routing plan is the part of a construction traffic management plan the highway authority actually reads. Agree the route before submission and the condition discharges in weeks rather than months.

Section 38 agreements and the road adoption bond

Adoption transfers permanent maintenance liability to the highway authority, which is why the standards are strict and the bond is larger than the build cost.

Requesting and using STATS19 collision data

STATS19 records have to be requested, and they arrive with limits. How to scope the request, separate the relevant collisions and write the analysis honestly.

Traffic survey timing and neutral months explained

Neutral months are a professional convention rather than a rule in guidance. Here is which periods highway authorities accept, and how to defend a count that gets questioned.

Blue badge parking and accessible arrival in new schemes

Accessible arrival is the whole route from the bay to the door. Here is how dimensions, distances, gradients and thresholds decide whether it works, and what to show on the drawings.

Responding to a highway authority objection

Most highway objections do not assert an unacceptable safety impact or a severe residual cumulative impact. Here is how to read one, answer it with evidence and escalate if it stalls.

Road safety audit stages and when each one applies

A road safety audit asks one question: could this layout hurt somebody. Here is what each stage covers and why a Stage 1 audit belongs before the planning application.

Trip generation when retail becomes residential

The net trip change usually shows a reduction and the parking position usually shows a problem. Highway authorities focus on the second, so run the two analyses separately.

Transport, Highways and Parking8 min read

Dropped kerbs and vehicle crossover applications

The kerb needs a section 184 vehicle crossing licence. The access and the driveway may also need planning permission, depending on road classification and how the surface drains.

Construction traffic routing, wheel washing and hours

Highway authorities condition construction traffic rather than refusing over it. The route evidence, the wheel wash detail and the pre-construction survey are what get the condition discharged first time.

Servicing and delivery design for a constrained urban site

Where the vehicle stops, and what happens while it is there. The evidence highway officers and environmental health want on servicing for a constrained site.

Designing cycle infrastructure to LTN 1/20

What LTN 1/20 expects from cycle routes inside and adjoining a development site, the drawings that evidence it, and how a departure from the standard is argued.

Arguing for parking below the council standard

The four parts of a parking reduction case that highway officers accept, from measured accessibility and census car ownership to permit-free agreements.

Agreeing a transport assessment scoping note

A scoping note agreed in writing with the highway authority fixes the study area, assessment years and methodology before any survey is commissioned. What to include and how to get it signed off.