Travel Plan
A Travel Plan is a long-term management strategy for a development that promotes sustainable transport choices and reduces reliance on single-occupancy car journeys. It has become a standard requirement for major planning applications across England, driven by national policy objectives to reduce congestion, improve air quality, and cut carbon emissions from transport. Highway authorities view Travel Plans as a practical tool for managing the transport demand generated by new developments.
Typical Cost
£300 – £5,000+
Turnaround
1 – 6 weeks
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What is a Travel Plan?
A Travel Plan is a package of measures tailored to a specific development that aims to reduce car dependency among residents, employees, or visitors. It sets out objectives, targets, and actions designed to encourage walking, cycling, public transport use, and car-sharing as alternatives to solo car trips. The plan includes a monitoring and review framework to measure progress toward the targets and allows for remedial action if targets are not being met. It is a living document that evolves over the lifetime of the development, typically covering a period of five years from first occupation.
When is a Travel Plan required?
Travel Plans are typically required for major residential developments of 50 or more dwellings, office developments above 2,500 square metres, retail schemes exceeding 800 square metres, educational facilities, healthcare facilities, and leisure developments with significant visitor numbers. The requirement is usually identified by the highway authority during consultation on the planning application and secured through a planning condition or Section 106 agreement. Some authorities also request Travel Plan Statements — a lighter document — for smaller schemes.
What does a Travel Plan include?
A comprehensive Travel Plan includes a site audit covering the location, accessibility, and existing transport conditions, a review of relevant policy context including national and local transport policies, baseline travel survey data or projected modal split, SMART objectives and targets for modal shift away from single-occupancy car use, a detailed action plan covering physical measures such as cycle parking and shower facilities, management measures such as a Travel Plan Coordinator appointment, promotional measures including personalised travel planning and public transport taster tickets, a monitoring strategy with annual travel surveys, a governance structure setting out responsibilities, and a remedial action plan if targets are not met.
How much does a Travel Plan cost?
The cost of preparing a Travel Plan typically ranges from £2,000 to £5,000 for a standard residential or commercial development. Larger or more complex schemes requiring detailed baseline surveys, extensive stakeholder consultation, or innovative measures may cost £5,000 to £10,000. Ongoing monitoring and management costs over the five-year Travel Plan period should also be budgeted — annual travel surveys typically cost £1,000 to £2,000 per survey, and the appointment of a Travel Plan Coordinator adds further running costs.
Who can prepare a Travel Plan?
Travel Plans are prepared by transport planning consultants, often the same firm that produces the Transport Assessment or Transport Statement. Practitioners should have experience of developing Travel Plans that satisfy highway authority requirements and an understanding of behavioural change techniques in transport. Membership of the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (CIHT) and familiarity with Modeshift STARS or iTRACE monitoring platforms is advantageous.
How long does a Travel Plan take?
A Travel Plan can typically be prepared in 3 to 6 weeks. If a baseline travel survey is required before the plan can be completed, the timeline extends to accommodate survey design, fieldwork, and analysis. For developments already under construction, a Framework Travel Plan may be submitted with the planning application, with the full Travel Plan produced prior to first occupation. The highway authority usually reviews the Travel Plan within 4 to 6 weeks of submission.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a Travel Plan and a Transport Assessment?
A Transport Assessment analyses the transport impacts of a development at a specific point in time and proposes mitigation for those impacts. A Travel Plan is a long-term management strategy that seeks to influence how people travel to and from the development over its lifetime. The two documents are complementary — the TA identifies the impacts, and the Travel Plan helps to manage ongoing demand for car travel.
Who is a Travel Plan Coordinator?
A Travel Plan Coordinator (TPC) is the person responsible for implementing and managing the Travel Plan on a day-to-day basis. For commercial developments, this is usually an employee of the occupying business or the facilities management team. For residential schemes, the TPC role is often assigned to the estate management company. The TPC organises travel surveys, promotes sustainable travel options, and reports on progress toward Travel Plan targets.
What happens if Travel Plan targets are not met?
Most Travel Plans include a remedial action plan that is triggered if monitoring reveals targets are not being met. Remedial actions might include enhanced promotional campaigns, additional cycle parking, subsidised public transport passes, or financial contributions to the highway authority for sustainable transport improvements. Where the Travel Plan is secured by a Section 106 agreement, failure to meet targets can result in financial penalties.
How long does a Travel Plan last?
Travel Plans typically run for five years from first occupation of the development, with annual monitoring throughout that period. Some highway authorities require longer monitoring periods for very large developments. After the formal monitoring period ends, the sustainable travel measures are expected to be embedded in the management of the development and continue in perpetuity.
Do residential developments need a Travel Plan?
Yes, residential developments above the relevant threshold — typically 50 or more dwellings — usually require a Travel Plan. Residential Travel Plans focus on providing residents with information about sustainable travel options, ensuring adequate cycle storage, installing electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and establishing car club bays. Personalised travel planning welcome packs for new residents are a common measure.
What is a Framework Travel Plan?
A Framework Travel Plan is a preliminary version submitted with the planning application when the end occupiers of the development are not yet known. It sets out the overarching strategy, objectives, and framework for future Travel Plans. Full Travel Plans for individual occupiers or phases are then prepared prior to occupation, working within the framework. This approach is common for speculative commercial developments and multi-phase residential schemes.
What monitoring is required for a Travel Plan?
Annual travel surveys are the principal monitoring tool. These typically use questionnaires distributed to residents or employees to establish how they travel to and from the site. The results are compared against the baseline modal split and the agreed targets. The survey data is compiled into an annual monitoring report submitted to the highway authority. Some authorities also require traffic count data at the site access to verify survey findings.
Can a Travel Plan reduce the parking requirement for a development?
In some cases, a robust Travel Plan can support a case for reduced parking provision, particularly in highly accessible locations with good public transport. The argument is that effective demand management through the Travel Plan will reduce the number of car trips, making fewer parking spaces necessary. However, highway authorities are cautious about accepting reduced parking on the basis of Travel Plan promises alone, and the relationship between parking provision and the Travel Plan should be carefully justified.
What is a Travel Plan bond?
A Travel Plan bond is a financial surety provided by the developer and held by the highway authority as security against the Travel Plan targets being met. If monitoring shows that targets are consistently not achieved, the authority can draw down the bond to fund remedial transport improvements. Bond amounts vary but are typically calculated based on the cost of alternative mitigation measures. Not all highway authorities require bonds, but they are increasingly common.
Is a Travel Plan legally enforceable?
A Travel Plan secured through a Section 106 legal agreement is enforceable against the landowner and any successor in title. Travel Plans secured by planning condition are also enforceable, though conditions must meet the tests set out in the NPPF. The highway authority can take enforcement action if the Travel Plan is not implemented or monitoring is not carried out. In practice, most disputes are resolved through negotiation rather than formal enforcement.